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Agriculture Reacts to House Tax Reform Proposal

Dan Economy, Industry News Release

tax reformThe House Ways and Means Committee tax overhaul plan released Thursday provides a blueprint for tax reform. The plan is essentially a set of promotional documents, with many details unaccounted for.

The documents say the estate tax would be repealed, and that the legislation will lower individual and corporate tax rates.

Agriculture groups are reviewing the first draft of the legislation.

  • The American Farm Bureau Federation applauded the introduction but acknowledged that AFBF staff will be studying the proposal to ensure the plan “reduces the tax burden” on farmers and ranchers.
  • The National Farmers Union opposes the tax plan while supporting efforts to simplify the tax code. Farmers Union President Roger Johnson says the tax plan would “shift the nation’s tax burden from the top earners in our country to the backs of American family farmers, ranchers, and the middle class.”
  • The National Biodiesel Board expressed disappointment because the plan does not include an extension of the biodiesel tax incentives.
  • And, the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives also expressed opposition to the tax plan, as the organization says eliminating Section 199 “would raise taxes on millions of farmers.”

From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.