City of College Station Blog

By Jennifer Nations, Water Resource Coordinator

What if you could spruce up your landscape with water-efficient plants, repair leaks, upgrade to efficient water and energy-efficient appliances, avoid sales tax, plus get some money back?

You can do that Saturday through Monday during the Texas Comptroller’s sales tax holiday on certain water and energy-efficient products. Combine your tax exemption with College Station Utilities’ electric and water rebates for even more savings.

Eligible tax-exempt items can conserve or retain groundwater (the source of all College Station’s water), recharge our water tables, or decrease ambient air temperature, reducing evaporation loss. You can find a full list of items on the Comptroller’s website, but highlights include:

• WaterSense-labeled products include new toilets, faucets, showerheads, or sprinkler controllers. Toilet leaks can waste thousands of gallons a month, and an upgrade can pay for itself quickly.
• Certain Energy Star-labeled products include air conditioners ($6,000 or less), refrigerators ($2,000 or less), ceiling fans, smart thermostats, LED light bulbs, clothes washers, dishwashers, and dehumidifiers. Note that not all Energy Star-labeled products are eligible for the tax exemption.
• Soaker or drip-irrigation hoses.
• Moisture controls for sprinkler or irrigation systems (i.e., a rain shutoff switch or soil moisture sensor).
• Plants, trees, grasses, soil, and compost.

Both WaterSense and Energy Star-labeled products undergo an independent certification process and meet the EPA’s specifications for efficiency and performance. They deliver exceptional performance and can save money for years.

Launched in 1992, Energy Star products have saved five trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity, $500 billion in energy costs, and four billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Since 2006, WaterSense has helped Americans save 8.7 trillion gallons of water, $207 billion in utility costs, and, thanks to the water-energy nexus, saved 997 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity.

For more information, visit the Water-Efficient Products Sales Tax Holiday page on the Texas Comptroller’s website. Having a sustainable, reliable water source is vital for future generations. Stay cool this weekend and enjoy water and energy savings!

About the Blogger

Jennifer Nations has been the City of College Station’s water resource coordinator since 1999 after two years as BVSWMA’s environmental compliance officer. She’s also chair of the Water Conservation and Reuse Division for the Texas Section of the American Water Works Association. A native of Fremont, Calif., Jennifer earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental & resource science from UC-Davis in 1995 and a master’s degree in water management & hydrologic science from Texas A&M in 2016.

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