Shoppers To Find Relief At Grocery Store After Grocery Sales Tax Ends

Oklahomans can now see a little relief at the grocery store now that the state grocery sales tax has ended.

Gov. Kevin Stitt says this is a way for Oklahomans to keep more money in their pockets.

“It's nice to have a 20 dollar bill, and go in there and go OK, and add it up in your head, and you don't get the tax shock at the end of the day,” said shopper Tiana Glass. 

Not everything is exempt; things like hygiene products or food prepared by the grocery store will still be taxed. But items like canned goods, peanut butter, and fresh produce won't be.

Tiana Glass says she's looking forward to going shopping and not having to budget a hefty tax on the final bill.

“I'm from California, and groceries were never taxed there like my whole life growing up, so when I came here and go big time grocery shopping, like $300 or $400, it made a big like $30 or $40 sometimes just in taxes,” she said.

To see how much of an impact could be noticed during one trip to the store, News On 6's Jordan Tidwell stopped by Reasor's on Wednesday when the grocery tax was still in effect.

“We went inside to buy bread, milk, and eggs; let's see what I spent: $9.84 cents.”

On Thursday, she went back to the store and bought the same exact things to see the difference in the total price.

“Today, I bought the same milk, bread, and eggs. I spent $9.43, but in tax, I only spent 36 cents, whereas yesterday, I spent 77 cents.”

Jordan saved 41 cents between the two days, and while that may not seem like a lot, state leaders say Oklahomans could save at least $400 a year at the store.

Shoppers like Will Anderson say as expensive as things are right now, any bit helps.

“By the end of the year, maybe you've saved a couple hundred bucks, and that goes toward maybe more groceries or whatever else,” he said.

Oklahoma was one of only 13 states that still taxed groceries.