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ACRE Act reintroduced in U.S. House

Legislation to lower interest rates for agricultural and rural home loans has been reintroduced in the U.S. House.

Iowa Republican Randy Feenstra helped introduce the Access to Credit for our Rural Economy, or ACRE Act, and tells Brownfield the bill would amend the IRS tax code to create a level playing field for community banks that administer ag real estate loans.

“By granting the tax exempt status on earned interest. So what we’re trying to do here is lower the interest rate on real estate loans for the farming community.”

He says this is an important year for tax policy as many provisions in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire.

“179 depreciation, depreciating that asset right away, 199a (tax deduction for) small business, adding that 20 percent pass-through. And here’s one called the ACRE Act trying to lower the interest costs for banks so they can provide real estate loans and even operational loans at a lower interest rate.”

American Bankers Association president Rob Nichols says the ACRE Act would deliver much-needed financial support to farmers working through a difficult economic cycle by lowering the cost of credit without creating new government payments or programs.