presidential paradigms
Expensing Rule Limits Must Be Addressed
Charles Wilfong, President, West Virginia Farm Bureau
An extremely important
issue must be addressed during
the current lame duck session
of Congress, which takes place
between now and the end of
the year. The Section 179
expensing rule allows farmers
and other small businesses the
ability to deduct the total cost
of new or used equipment or
other property in the year it is purchased, rather than
having to depreciate the cost over a longer period
of time. Over the past few years, the Section 179
expensing limit allowed up to $500,000 in allowable
purchases to be deducted in the year the purchase
was made. However, for 2014, that limit will only
be $25,000 because Congress has failed to pass an
extension of the higher limit.
The House of Representatives has done their part,
and passed a permanent extension of the $500,000
limit. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, on the
other hand, has not allowed a vote to be taken by
the full Senate. Without action from the Senate, the
$25,000 limit stands.
This year in particular, when we are seeing
exceptionally good livestock prices, we need this
valuable tax tool to help us manage our equipment,
buildings and other purchases that dramatically affect
our farm profitability. When we have good years
like this, such tools help us maximize income and
allow us to make the equipment and other purchases
we need to make, and allow us to average out the
bad years when we wrestle with bad weather and
unpredictable markets and don’t have sufficient
income to make those purchases.
Many farmers have already made significant
equipment purchases during 2014, unaware that
expensing limits have dramatically decreased.
Senators Rockefeller and Manchin need to hear from
us about the importance of getting increased Section
179 expensing provisions extended immediately.
Farmers have got to have clarity, so that we can make
alternate plans if necessary.
Agriculture’s Leading Role in the International Marketplace
Bob Stallman, President, American Farm Bureau Federation
Farmers and ranchers have
a long history of promoting
American strength and goodwill
through international trade.
Thanks to our ability to satisfy
demand here and abroad, U.S.
agriculture is one of the few
sectors that can boast a positive
trade b