Texas could soon have a tax-free holiday for gun shopping

The Texas Senate has passed a bill supporting an annual tax-free weekend for Texas shoppers — those buying guns, that is.

Senate Bill 228, proposed by Sen. Brandon Creighton (R), was approved in a 21-10 vote and is now headed to Texas' House. Creighton called the tax break a "Second Amendment holiday weekend," The Texas Tribune reports, and he wants the holiday to be the last weekend of August, a week before hunting season begins. The tax break would cover firearms, ammunition, and hunting supplies.

Not everyone is happy about the proposal, though — it would apparently cost Texas $3.6 million a year in lost tax revenue. But Creighton thinks the proposal would place Texas on a more even playing field with Louisiana, which already has a similar tax break in place, as do Mississippi and South Carolina.

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"Since 2009, retailers in east and southeast Texas have been at a competitive disadvantage when it comes to their Louisiana counterparts," Creighton said in a statement. "Providing this sales tax break prior to the start of hunting season will be an economic driver for small businesses and will provide our hunters much deserved savings."