The White House recently announced that it has decided to shelve the Christmas Tree Tax for the time being after drawing numerous criticisms from government officials and the general public.

The Federal Register previously announced that a 15-cent charge would be imposed on fresh Christmas trees to fund efforts to improve the image and marketing of the industry. Artificial Christmas trees would have been exempt from the tax even if the US Department of Agriculture had not delayed its implementation last November 9, the same day it was planned to take effect.

Rep. Steve Scalise immediately called the Christmas Tree Tax a “Grinch” move by the Obama administration while other critics called it a tax on Christmas. Various groups and individuals have also expressed skepticism over the fee although it was supported by most Christmas tree growers.

The 15-cent charge was meant to fund the Christmas Tree Promotion Board, whose primary goal was to strengthen the position of fresh Christmas trees in the market by launching a program for promotion, research, evaluation, and information.

According to ABC News, American producers sell an estimated 17 million every holiday season while artificial Christmas trees top the sales at 17.4 million. The Board was created earlier this year as part of the National Christmas Tree Association’s efforts to boost sales, which continue to suffer from competition with producers of artificial trees.

The tax was first requested by the National Christmas Tree Association in 2009 and they claimed that the program was not expected to have any impact on the final price that consumers pay for their purchase.

However, Heritage Foundation Vice President David Addington said that the fee would likely be passed on to consumers and that it is inappropriate for the government to lend a hand to fresh tree sellers and not to artificial tree sellers. Addington also emphasized that the Christmas tree already has a great image and the government did not need to step in to enhance it.