Obama's Christmas Tree Tax

G

general35

5,000+ Posts
Don't complain. He is creating jobs. Probably a 100 or so idiots making 100k plus a year to promote the Christmas Tree industry. Maybe it is necessary since the PC crowd (mostly dems) decided it was offensive to name the trees after Christmas. I'm really not sure. What is known is that the federal government has decided it is necessary to promote the Christmas Tree industry in the even americans who were raised on the holiday don't know much about it...

President Obama’s Agriculture Department today announced that it will impose a new 15-cent charge on all fresh Christmas trees—the Christmas Tree Tax—to support a new Federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees.

In the Federal Register of November 8, 2011, Acting Administrator of Agricultural Marketing David R. Shipman announced that the Secretary of Agriculture will appoint a Christmas Tree Promotion Board. The purpose of the Board is to run a “program of promotion, research, evaluation, and information designed to strengthen the Christmas tree industry’s position in the marketplace; maintain and expend existing markets for Christmas trees; and to carry out programs, plans, and projects designed to provide maximum benefits to the Christmas tree industry” (7 CFR 1214.46(n)). And the program of “information” is to include efforts to “enhance the image of Christmas trees and the Christmas tree industry in the United States” (7 CFR 1214.10).

To pay for the new Federal Christmas tree image improvement and marketing program, the Department of Agriculture imposed a 15-cent fee on all sales of fresh Christmas trees by sellers of more than 500 trees per year (7 CFR 1214.52). And, of course, the Christmas tree sellers are free to pass along the 15-cent Federal fee to consumers who buy their Christmas trees.

Acting Administrator Shipman had the temerity to say the 15-cent mandatory Christmas tree fee “is not a tax nor does it yield revenue for the Federal government” (76 CFR 69102). The Federal government mandates that the Christmas tree sellers pay the 15-cents per tree, whether they want to or not. The Federal government directs that the revenue generated by the 15-cent fee goes to the Board appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out the Christmas tree program established by the Secretary of Agriculture. Mr. President, that’s a new 15-cent tax to pay for a Federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees.

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Thanks Mich. You made my point for me. Although my post has nothing to do with the war on christmas and the tax is real, it isnt fake. it doesnt matter when it was first discussed. Does the Chirstmas Tree industry really need federal funding for advertising? That goes for all dairy products, farmers, meat producers, etc. Did americans forget how to eat? Is this because consumers are buying fake trees? This should be the way to go. where is the outrage by the tree huggers?
 
Where are all the tree huggers about chopping down all the baby Christmas Trees, or do they consider that an abortion and choice?

I would be so confused as a liberal!!!!!
 
Where are all the tree huggers about chopping down all the baby Christmas Trees, or do they consider that an abortion and choice?

Jesus. We really need some higher quality posters.
 
I live in an area of western NC that grows a tremendous amount of Christmas Trees, if you ever buy a fresh Fraser Fir there is a good chance it came from here. My neighbor has around 100+ trees growing at the end of my driveway. The biggest problem with Christmas trees is a supply issue, some very large players have moved in and started to produce a lot more trees than in years past.. A lot of these trees end up in hardware stores like Lowes, for $15/tree or even lower locally. A family grower might have $9-$12 invested in that tree, so a lot of the smaller farms are pulling out of the Christmas tree business.

We actually did a fund raiser where we had 100 fresh (hand picked) Christmas trees that we got donated and took them down to just outside Charlotte to sell. We were selling these trees, some of which were 8ft+ for $10. I think we sold maybe 12 or 13 trees over a weekend. I am not sure the marketing push could increase the demand enough to compensate for the abundant supply of trees.

Ohh and they are already shipping trees out. I pass at least 3 or 4 trucks a days piled with Christmas trees.
 
Good ole Mich, never misses a chance to cry 'Bush'. This could have been in the works since the 20's, but it came into effect in 2011 A.B.(After Bush). Own it, embrace it..just like war success. Even though that has been going on since '08 too.

And why the F are we supporting christmas trees? At least the ag products are year round. This is seasonal and makes no sense. Better yet, let's get out of the industry promotional business all together. Let the business' promote their own products.
 
And why the F are we supporting christmas trees? At least the ag products are year round.

What? Most "ag products", or a lot of them, aren't year-round. That's hardly the rationale by which not to support X-mas trees.
 
I was referring to the beef, egg, pork and milk ads. Products you can use at any time. Still the ag organizations should be handling their own advertisements. It's not like they can't afford it.
 
Obama just called off the X-Mas tree tax.
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He is such a coward. Mr. President, if your instinct tells you to hire a few hundred or thousand people to promote the spirit of christmas, go for it.
 
I am in favor of a Christmas tree tax as well as any other taxes that would force the American citizenry to pay for the government they, via their elected representatives, say they want.
 
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