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Cotton Transition Assistance Program Enrollment Begins Next Week
The USDA announced today that the cotton transition assistance program (CTAP) enrollment will begin next week. The 2014 Farm Bill provided cotton growers with a new Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX) beginning with the 2015 crop year. Since this program is not in place for the 2014 crop year, there will be a cotton transition […]
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Another Conservation Easement Tax Court Case – Mostly in Taxpayer’s Favor
There are multiple Tax Court rulings on conservation easements each year. In the Schmidt v. Commissioner case issued today, the Tax Court ruled mostly in favor of the taxpayer, but not totally. The Schmidt’s lived in Colorado for many years and purchased about 40 acres of land in northern El Paso County. They attempted to […]
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IRS Provides Two Optional Methods for SE Health Insurance Deduction
Self-employed farmers are allowed to deduct their health insurance premiums in arriving at their adjusted gross income (AGI). However, beginning in 2014, many of these same farmers will also be eligible for a premium tax credit based upon their income. The premium tax credit is on a sliding scale and phases out at a maximum of 400% […]
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On a Personal Note
As most know, I attended the Farm Financial Standards Council annual meeting in Billings last week. This ended at about 11 am on Thursday and that afternoon, I got a tour of the Padlock Ranch which is about 400,000 acres of ranch land located in Northern Wyoming and Southern Montana. A lot of the acres are […]
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FSA Extends 2012/2013 Emergency Assistance to August 15, 2014
The FSA announced today that they are extending the deadline for Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) deadline for 2012 and 2013 losses from August 1, 2014 to August 15, 2014. This deadline applies to assistance for damages incurred between October 1, 2011 and September 30, 2013 (the governments fiscal years). […]
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Financial Fraud Can Happen to You
A recent article in the Journal of Accountancy discusses the importance or fraud prevention and detection that is important for businesses of all sizes. In the article, the individual was able to misappropriate $8 million all because he had the ability to request AND approve checks. Given the nature of many farmer’s operations, they may […]
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Commodity Wages Save Payroll Taxes for Kids Too!
In my previous post today, I had recapped the wages paid to children being exempt from payroll taxes in certain situations. In the case presented, the wages in fact, were subject to payroll taxes. The one item I had forgotten to mention is that if commodity wages were paid to the children in any of […]
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Issuing a Fraudulent Form 1099 Can Cost You Money
When a farmer makes certain payments to service providers and other vendors, they are normally required to issue a Form 1099 if the total amounts paid exceeds $600 in a year. Normally, this is a very straight-forward process, however, if the farmer willfully files a fraudulent form 1099, the penalty for this can be very […]
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A Trip to the Zoo
I posted yesterday on one of the sessions from the Farm Financial Standards Council annual meeting. Last night, we traveled to the Zoo Montana for dinner. This zoo was in financial difficulty about two years ago and almost closed down. The zoo has about 70 acres of ground, however, only 25 acres is being currently […]
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Pay Your Kids; It Saves Taxes!
We had a reader ask the following questions: “Have a good understanding of payroll taxes on payroll paid to a child under 18 working in the operation. The laws are not very concise in my situation. Currently my parents and myself are 1/3 owners of a LLC taxed as a partnership. I am divorced with […]
