Demand Tax-Free Books!

 

The government, over the years, has helped relieve the tax-cost burden of saving up and paying for major things, such as retirement, education, and health.  Look at these programs, for example:

* IRA — personal tax-saving retirement plan
* 401-K — tax-saving employer retirement plan
* 529 Plan — covers college expense investments to grow without taxes
* HSA — covers health expenses pre-tax

Why don’t we have a financial instrument to help people purchase books and cultural arts products and supplies?

Think about it.

We want to encourage reading. One in ten Americans are full-on illiterate and many more read at a low level. Studies show that 1 in 4 Americans did not read a single book last year and more than half the populace did not read literature in the prior 12 months. Why not allow people, especially those in the lower economic strata, a tax break, so they can purchase books at a lower price?

Book sales would increase for publishers and authors — and more people will read more books. More book purchases means more local tax income for cities. Win-win-win!

The truth is that books are already available for free or can be obtained at a low cost. We have:
* Thousands of school and public libraries offering free books
* Thousands of mini-libraries that allow you to keep free books
* Online services like BookBub that offer crazy deals on new e-books
* E-Books selling for as low as 99 cents on Amazon
* Used bookstores, ebay, and others reselling books at a low cost
* Street fairs peddling $2 hardcover books

So, to be fair, anyone can find free and inexpensive books, but maybe not the most popular new books in paper nor in pristine condition. No matter, my plan is a great idea.

Here is another advantage of my proposal:

It incentivizes people to set aside some funds for books. Once the money is deposited, it can be invested and grow. That money is only ear-marked for books, obligating one to commit to reading. Purchases can also be made to gift books to others, furthering the cause.

Can a senator or house of representative embrace this — and propose legislation? Why not? Why, yes!

Need Book Marketing Help?

Brian Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors promote their story, sell their book, and grow their brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!

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About Brian Feinblum

Brian Feinblum should be followed on Twitter @theprexpert. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2023. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.3 million pageviews. With 4,400+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and two jobs at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America, and has spoken at ASJA, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. He has been featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald. For more information, please consult: www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum.