Farm Operations
-
Section 179 / 50% Bonus Depreciation
Due to the passage of the new tax law this week, we have gotten several questions about Section 179 and bonus depreciation. A couple of questions are as follows: “Can you please expand on the extension of section 179? For 2012, will the limits remain at $139,000/$560,000 or do they increase to $500,000/$2mil. For 2013, […]
-
Some More Goodies Buried in the Fine Print
Included in the tax bill passed this week were some additional tax “goodies” for both farmers and non-farm taxpayers. In previous years, taxpayers over age 70 1/2 were allowed to contribute up to $100,000 each year to a qualified charity and not have it count as income. The amount given to the charity was not […]
-
Be Careful Of Fiscal Year Section 179 Issues!
Section 179 and bonus depreciation provisions are based upon a different set of dates for your asset purchases. Bonus depreciation on new equipment is based upon the date that you actually purchase and place in service the asset. For new assets bought between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2012, you are entitled to use […]
-
How Much Would A Gas Tax Raise?
We hear about the President’s proposal to raise $1.4-1.6 trillion in new taxes over a ten year period. That is a lot of money, however, what if we raised the gas tax. How much revenue would that raise over the same 10 year period. Right now we consume around 135 billion gallons of gasoline in […]
-
Watch Your Timing On Year-End Gifts
We know that there will be a lot of large one-time gifts made in the next three weeks. However, there will also be many smaller gifts that are under the $13,000 annual exclusion amount. Care must be made with these gifts at year-end to ensure that they are 2012 gifts, not 2013 gifts. Make sure […]
-
Headed to Chicago for EWA
I head out for the second annual Executive Women in Agriculture conference sponsored by Top Producer magazine. I spoke at the conference last year and women tend to ask more and many times better questions than men. I look forward to speaking at this year’s event and I already have spoken to some of the […]
-
2012 May Be Last Year for Section 179 Flexibility
Most farmers know the benefits of the Section 179 deduction. The deduction has been as high as $500,000, is $139,000 for 2012 and is scheduled to drop back to $25,000 in 2013. What many farmers do not know about is the ability to go back and amend their tax return to change their Section 179 […]
-
IRS Bumps 2013 Standard Mileage Rates by a Penny per Mile
The IRS announced last week (IR-2012-95) a penny per mile increase in the standard mileage rate for business and medical or moving purposes. For business purposes, the rate increases from 55.5 cents per mile to 56.5 cents per mile (don’t ask me why they do not round it to the nearest penny). For medical or moving […]
-
Don’t Forget The Small Employer Health Care Credit
We tend to talk more about the tax costs of Obama Care and forget about some of the tax savings that are available. One of those savings is for employers that cover part or all of their health insurance premium costs. This credit is allowed in full assuming less than 11 employees and average wages […]
-
Farm Lending Rose at Fastest Pace in Five Years
Due to the summer drought spurring much higher feed costs, farm lending activity at commercial banks recorded their fastest pace in five years. According to the Federal Reserve of Kansas City in their National Trends in Farm Lending October, 2012 report, demand for short-term operating loans increased as input costs soared and herd liquidation boosted […]