‘Bible Tax’ No More: Trump Exempts Religious Items From China Tariff List
President Trump is exempting Bibles from upcoming tariff increases on Chinese goods after book publishers warned against a possible “Bible tax.”
A 10 percent hike on $300 billion worth of other Chinese goods will go into effect for some items on Sep. 1 and another set on Dec. 15, according to a statement by the United States Trade Representative made Tuesday. . .
Christian publishers, who report that more than 75 percent of Bibles are printed in China due to the specialized printing technology and formatting, celebrated Tuesday’s announcement from the office of U.S. Trade Ambassador Robert E. Lighthizer.
“Whatever one thinks about trade policy, the Bible should never have been a subject of this sort of taxation,” Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), said in a statement.
I am pleased to see today that US tariffs on China will now exempt the Bibles printed in China. This is welcome news for @LifeWay and many other publishers and ministries.
— Russell Moore (@drmoore) August 13, 2019
Ben Mandrell, president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources, echoed Moore’s claims, adding that there has been “great concern among the Christian publishing community” since Trump’s trade dispute with China began. (Read more from “‘Bible Tax’ No More: Trump Exempts Religious Items From China Tariff List” HERE)
Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE
