Parents who have waited to buy that new book bag or pair of shoes for their school-age children will have an extra incentive to pick up those items and more today and Saturday.

Georgia’s sales tax holiday began at 12:01 a.m. this morning and continues until midnight Saturday, giving consumers 48 hours to purchase back-to-school items tax-free.

The holiday is the first of its type in Georgia since 2009, when the Georgia General Assembly last initiated the tax break.

Items that are exempt from local and state sales tax during the holiday include clothing and footwear with a sales price of $100 or less per item, personal computers and computer-related accessories with a sales price of $1,000 or less, and general school supplies with a sales price of $20 or less.

A few notable items not exempt are jewelry, watches, cell phones, furniture, batteries and televisions.

The tax holiday was first approved by Georgia lawmakers in 2002 as a four-day weekend. In 2010 the state legislature stopped the tax-free days.

While the tax break was reinstated for this year it was only for two days and set for after many school systems, including Rome City Schools and Floyd County Schools, had already started classes.

Click here for the Georgia Department of Revenue sales tax holiday site.