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Tax changes impacting farmers are mostly off the table in reconciliation bill

After months of worry over potential changes to estate taxes and stepped-up basis, a farm tax advisor says any tax changes that would greatly impact farmers are mostly off the table as Congress debates the reconciliation bill.

Brian Kuehl with K-coe Isom tells Brownfield while farmers aren’t out of the woods yet, the chances of those provisions returning in the final bill are slim.

“There is always a possibility and until we see the final bill we won’t know for sure, but right now it feels like it’s on a pretty good track. The provisions we were concerned about that would have hurt farmers have dropped out.”

He says the ag industry is really pushing for the infrastructure bill that is moving through congress at the same time, but he points out the reconciliation bill has a lot of items farmers and rural Americans will like as well.

“There is significant funding in there for an ag title that incudes things like incentives for farmers to plant cover crops. There is $555 billion put aside for addressing climate change, of which about $25 billion would go to the Commodity Credit Corporation which in turn would flow out to farmers for undertaking climate friendly practices on their farms.”

Kuehl says while major estate tax changes are off the table, it is never too soon to begin or update farm estate plans.