Indiana Farm Bureau President, Don Villwock commented on the recently passed fiscal package regarding the farm bill extension.  “Indiana Farm Bureau appreciates the recent efforts of the U.S. Congress whose last-minute deliberations yielded a legislative package that seems to have averted the so-called fiscal cliff.  A number of tax provisions were handled in the agreement, but the spending side of the equation will need more attention in the coming months. The automatic budget cuts that were set to begin yesterday will now take place at the end of February.
“Part of the legislative package signed into law by President Obama late last night is a nine-month extension of portions of the 2008 farm bill. During the past year the House and Senate ag committees, with input from farmers, crafted their versions of a five-year farm bill, both of which contained significant policy reforms and billions of dollars in savings over the next 10 years. Indiana Farm Bureau is disappointed that neither of these versions became law. Hoosier farmers are now left with what is at best a stop-gap measure.
“While we are grateful that lawmakers compromised on the onerous estate tax issue by keeping the $5 million exemption level and only raising the rate by 5 percent (from 35 to 40), we encourage members of the 113^th Congress to seriously address the spending side of the fiscal equation. We also call on them to begin work immediately on a five-year farm bill that gives some degree of fiscal and policy certainty to Indiana’s agricultural community.”

(article provided by IndianaFarm Bureau)
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