Ag Groups Ask House Leadership to Reform Estate Tax
December 1, 2009
Ag Groups Ask House Leadership to Reform Estate Tax
NMPF has joined forces with 90 other agricultural groups to urge estate tax reform in a letter to House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader John Boehner. The letter expressed support for the Family Farm Preservation and Conservation Estate Tax Act, H.R. 3524, sponsored by Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA). This bill would exclude farm assets from estate taxes for as long as the property remains as a family agricultural operation.
The current estate tax exemption is set to expire in 2010, leaving family farms and ranches vulnerable to excessive taxes in the case of a change in ownership of an estate. Agricultural organizations like NMPF are seeking Congressional assistance in providing relief to preserve these family farms and ranches.
Farm equity has more than doubled in recent years, primarily due to increased value of farm real estate – value that does nothing for agricultural production. By 2011, 1 in 10 farm estates would owe the tax. NMPF will continue to support the highest exemption levels possible while maintaining the stepped-up basis, and believes it is essential that Congress additionally deal with the unique problems that farmers and forest owners face with generational family transition.
