Christmas Tree Tax

[sluggish]

We just cut the tops off our neighbor's trees.  There's no tax in that..

[wil3ur]

Trees cause global warming.  Tax the hell out of them!

[donna43]

A quick Google says that there are about 25 million live Christmas trees sold in the US each year.  Rounding up, that's about 4million dollars.  Subtract the cost of collecting the tax and the bureaucracy involved... 

Then consider how much a meaningful nationwide advertising campaign would cost...  Millions upon millions of dollars...

This has boondoggle written all over it.

I would be really curious to see whose pockets are getting lined by this.

That 25 million live Christmas trees sold in the US each year will be less this year due to the fact a xmas tree farm went up in smoke in the Bastrop,Tx fire on labor day of this tear. 

[Maverick]

Like I said earlier, this had scam all over it. This did not come from the government, it was not a tax, it was the "industry" assessing a fee on itself to pay for the board promoting itself. Promoting the product is a function of business operations not the government.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/11/09/merry-christmas-agriculture-department-imposes-christmas-tree-tax/?test=latestnews

[coombz]

When talking about the amount of the tax and it's burden on the tax payer, I totally agree with you Del.

But when I look at the virtually meaningless amount of money it will raise for the cause of promoting the sale of more Christmas trees, I have to wonder what the point of the tax is?  It starts to smell a little.

I mean, if the point is to promote the sale of trees and protect an industry, why not a more meaningful amount?

   I'd say there are probably more significant corruption issues in the US to worry about than this potential Xmas tree dodginess!

[wil3ur]

  I'd say there are probably more significant corruption issues in the US to worry about than this potential Xmas tree dodginess!

Yeah...  I hear the ATF has been caught in yet another scandal.  This time Arming the #1 Threat to America:





BEARS!!!

[coombz]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q185ZtEocUA

[Jayhawk]

Like I said earlier, this had scam all over it. This did not come from the government, it was not a tax, it was the "industry" assessing a fee on itself to pay for the board promoting itself. Promoting the product is a function of business operations not the government.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/11/09/merry-christmas-agriculture-department-imposes-christmas-tree-tax/?test=latestnews

The Ag Department has similar support for 20 other campaigns like this.  Since this campaign supports fresh trees, one could easily argue that this would help people buy local rather than imported artificial trees.

[wil3ur]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q185ZtEocUA

It might have been a Samsquanch

[coombz]

[Rash]

I like metal christmas trees.  It scares the bears  off, because of all the glitz.  I haven't had a bear attack since I bought one.

[BoilerDown]

If they wanted to support live tree sellers, then why implement a tax on their products?  If they want to artificially swing support away from fake trees to live trees, then they should tax all trees and give the money to the live tree seller association.  But why is the government asked to do this at all?  Why can't the tree growers just pay a fee directly to their own association?  That's how it really doesn't make sense.

[Maverick]

If they wanted to support live tree sellers, then why implement a tax on their products?  If they want to artificially swing support away from fake trees to live trees, then they should tax all trees and give the money to the live tree seller association.  But why is the government asked to do this at all?  Why can't the tree growers just pay a fee directly to their own association?  That's how it really doesn't make sense.

Simple. If they industry says they are raising prices for their own promotion, people are more likely to not want to pay it. If they claim it is a tax, it means the industry is NOT raising prices, that nasty ol government is doing it so folks don't think that the industry is just being "greedy".

[Reschke]

Well they announced yesterday that they were going to shelve the program for now. If you buy a fresh or formerly living christmas tree this year I bet they go up between 5-10% just because people are going to say they need to do that to cover their "costs" from the suppliers.

[Babalonian]

If they wanted to support live tree sellers, then why implement a tax on their products?  If they want to artificially swing support away from fake trees to live trees, then they should tax all trees and give the money to the live tree seller association.  But why is the government asked to do this at all?  Why can't the tree growers just pay a fee directly to their own association?  That's how it really doesn't make sense.

People seem to of missed my point.  Look into the oodles of tax breaks and goverment sponsoring of christmass tree farmers.  Look into who funded the lobying for this.  Clearly they need a tax and more goverment and consumer $$$, because life's already hard enough these days as a tree farmer with a lobyist in DC.

Not that I'm discouraging or anti chirstmass tree farms, but my stance is pigs should get fat - hogs should gets slaughtered.