NEWSLETTER ARTICLES

Livestock and Natural Resources

Last year I prepared an article for the October 1997 edition of this newsletter, titled "Trichomoniasis: What You Need To Know." The following is an update by Dr. John Maas, Extension Veterinarian, regarding what is happening to control this disease and its spread throughout California.

With input by industry, which includes Cattle Health Committee of the California Cattlemen’s Association, the University of California, and Animal Health Branch of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, a program is being proposed to control this disease.

The proposed program would include:

• Development of uniform guidelines for the voluntary testing of bulls for Trichomoniasis at point of sale of bulls (salesyards/auctions, bull sales, private treaty, etc. ).
• Testing for Trichomoniasis will be on a voluntary basis; however, positive test results must be reported to the Animal Health Branch of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA).
• Veterinarians from the Animal Health Branch of CDFA will notify contact herds of positive test results in neighboring herds. Imported bulls must be tested negative for Trichomoniasis 30 days prior to shipment into or 14 days after arrival in California with the following exceptions: dairy bulls, bulls for non-breeding purposes (rodeo, etc.), bulls consigned for slaughter, bulls under pasture-to-pasture permit, virgin bulls certified by owner, bulls destined for artificial insemination premises, and bulls less than eighteen months of age.
• Staff from the California Cattlemen’s Association would work with CDFA Animal Health Branch to draft regulations pursuant to this proposed plan for presentation to the CCA membership in December.

The following may be new information to you, and if it isn’t, let it serve as a useful reminder. However, if you aren’t familiar with this topic, it could be very helpful. Steve Sutter, UC Area Farm Advisor with the Agricultural Personnel Management Program, Fresno, recently provided us the information for this article.

The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 lowers Federal income taxes for most farmers, and allows farm families to transfer farms across generations more easily, according to USDA agricultural economists James Monke and Ron Durst. Most provisions of the new law become effective in 1998.

An estimated 6% of farm estates currently owe Federal estate and gift taxes compared with just over 1% of all estates. The Act gradually increases the unified estate and gift tax credit to shield $1 million from estate taxes by 2006. However, due to the relatively slow phase-in through 2003, most of the benefits will be realized in 2004 and beyond. This, and other provisions of the Act should reduce, if not eliminate, the need to sell farm assets to pay Federal estate taxes, especially for continuing businesses.

Lower capital gains tax rates provide the greatest income tax savings for farmers nearly $725 million of the estimated $1.6 billion annual savings for the US farming industry. The rate declines from 28% to 20% for individuals in most tax brackets (from 15% to 10% for taxpayers in the 15% bracket), with lower rates available in the future for assets held at least 5 years.

Couples can exclude up to $500,000 of the gain on the sale of their principal residence. This new exclusion can be used as frequently as every 2 years.

The new law also expands retirement savings incentives. Currently, only about 9% of farmers annually contribute to an individual retirement account (IRA). Although the 1997 Act creates a new, nondeductible "Roth IRA," deductible IRAs are usually preferred if marginal tax rates are expected to fall substantially in retirement.

Farmers who pay their own health insurance premiums will benefit from expanded self-employed health insurance deductions. This year, farmers and other self-employed taxpayers are allowed a deduction of 45% of health insurance premiums; the percentage deduction gradually increases to 100% by tax year 2007 and thereafter.

The Act restores farmers' ability to use deferred payment contracts without being subject to the alternative minimum tax (AMT). Deferred payment contracts allow farmers to deliver farm commodities for sale at a specified price, with payment deferred until the following year. The Act also repeals the AMT for small corporations (most farm corporations) beginning in 1988.

The Act increases tax benefits for most taxpayers for having dependent children by providing a $500 ($400 for 1998) tax credit for each qualifying child under the age of 17. Additional refundable credit is allowed for taxpayers with 3 or more children.

The new child tax credit is expected to benefit about one-third of all farmers and their families.

Farmers and their advisers should request the free IRS Publication 225 "Farmer's Tax Guide" each year (December) by calling 1-800-829-3676.

Would you like a copy of the book, Labor Management in Ag: Cultivating Personnel Productivity? Gregorio Encina Billikopf, UC Area Advisor in the Agricultural Personnel Management Program from Modesto has recently converted this book into a downloadable version.

Almost 2000 copies of the book have been distributed into five different continents since 1994. Topics include conflict management, employee selection, performance appraisal, incentive pay, interpersonal relations, employee discipline and more. Recently, in an attempt to make the book available to as many people as possible, an electronic version was created that could be viewed on-line on the WWW, plus be easily updated.

Now, Gregorio tells us they have taken one more step to make this tool more useful by making it possible for you to download the book with the latest updates onto your hard drive or floppy disk. You can then view it on your Web browser whether you are working off or on line. You may see the book or download it at: