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Comprehensive tax reform needed for farmers and ranchers

The chairman of the House Agriculture Committee says farmers and ranchers need comprehensive tax reform.

Congressman Mike Conaway (R-TX), a former CPA, says managing tax liabilities a huge priority for farmers.  “Agriculture is an industry of high fixed costs, with lead times that last an entire growing season or longer and highly variable returns combined with historically tight margins,” he says.  “To support producers Congress has worked to soften the negative impact of inflexible tax rules that do not make sense for agriculture.”

Patricia Wolff, senior director of Congressional Affairs for American Farm Bureau says the organization wants a tax code that helps farmers and ranchers navigate the unpredictable nature of their business.  “Unless farmers and ranchers continue to have access to a menu of tax provisions that help them deal with the cyclical and unpredictable nature of their businesses,” she says.  “There is potential that even with lower tax rates, there could be an increase in taxes that farmers and ranchers pay.”

House Ways and Means and former Ag Committee member Kristi Noem (R-SD) testified she wants to see the full repeal of the death tax.  “My family was hit with the death tax when my dad had an accident on our family farm at the age of 49,” she says.  “About a month after he passed away my family got a letter from the IRS that said we owed money on land and machinery  and cattle and we didn’t have money in the bank.  It was very difficult for us to keep our family operation going.” 

Farm Bureau and other ag groups support several of the provisions in the House’s proposed tax reform blueprint; including reduced income tax rates, reduced capital gains taxes, immediate business expensing, and estate tax repeal.