Farmland Property Taxes

DeBoer: Farmland owners to pay higher property taxes in 2014 By Jennifer Stewart WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Indiana's farmland owners will pay higher property taxes in 2014 on the heels of an increase in the base rate for assessed land value, Purdue Extension agricultural economist Larry DeBoer says. The base rate, which is the starting point for calculating taxes on farmland, jumped from $1,630 per acre in 2012 to $1,760 for 2013. Taxes assessed on this year's base rate will be paid in 2014. The base rate has exactly doubled in just seven years, from $880 per acre in 2007. The value of Indiana farmland is assessed based on use value rather than market value. So, even if a parcel of farmland borders commercial or residential development, it is assessed based on the income it can generate from farming, not the selling price. When determining property taxes, Indiana's Department of Local Government Finance takes into account the base rate, a productivity factor and an influence factor. Productivity factors are based on the soil's productivity for growing corn. They are scheduled to rise for taxes in 2014, but according to DeBoer, bills have been proposed in the General Assembly to cancel that change. (SB0319, HB1114, HB1198) The influence factor is a percentage reduction in the dollar amount of the productivity factor to account for conditions, such as frequent flooding, grade or forest cover. The assessed farmland value has been rising because the base rate is calculated annually based on a number of factors, such as commodity prices, land rents, input costs and interest rates. "The base rate is calculated using a capitalization formula," DeBoer said. "The rent or net income earned from an acre is divided by a rate of return. The department calculates capitalized values for six years, drops the highest value and then averages the remaining five years to get the base rate. "Each year, a value from an earlier year leaves the calculation and a value from a recent year is averaged in. The base rate goes up when the value coming in is higher than value dropping out." Compared with six years ago, farmland rents are higher, commodity prices are up and interest rates are down - a combination that increases the base rate. But there's a four-year lag between the numbers in the calculation and the tax year, so the numbers to be used for 2014 taxes are from 2005 to 2010. For example, for 2012 assessments, which will be taxed in 2013, the capitalized value for 2003 was erased and the capitalized value from 2009 included, DeBoer said. The 2003 value was $1,407 per acre, and the 2009 value was $2,066. That means the base rate rose from $1,500 per acre for taxes in 2012 to $1,630 for taxes in 2013. DeBoer said the trend of increasing property taxes will continue. "Rents and commodity prices were higher and interest rates lower in 2011 than they were in 2005, so the base rate for taxes paid in 2015 should be about $2,050 - a 16.5 percent rise from those paid in 2014," he said. The drought's reduction of corn yields to a 20-year low will affect property tax bills, but not until those payable in 2016, when the 2012 numbers enter the calculation. "Rising rents and prices and falling interest rates should raise the pay-2016 rate to about $2,430," DeBoer said. "The 2012 drought will have a small effect. If yields had been normal, the base rate probably would have been $100 to $200 higher." DeBoer's full report and accompanying podcast can be found in his column Capital Comments at https://ag.purdue.edu/agcomm/pages/Newscolumns.aspx.

Protect the Harvest

Protecting The Harvest, A Mission Worth Supporting

Posted on 27 January 2013 by Gary Truitt

Last week I wrote about how agriculture needs to draw a line in the sand and stand up against certain forces bent on its destruction.  I got a few e-mails in support of that position, most thanking me for standing up for agriculture. But folks, I am not the one who needs to stand up — you are.  In my opinion, the response of many large farm organizations to the attacks from HSUS and others has been a bit on the timid side. We have relied on facts, science, and engaging in “dialogues” on food and agriculture issues.  Meanwhile, those on the other side have resorted to lawsuits, intimidation, voter referendums, misleading television commercials, and even lobbying and legislation.  There has emerged, however, an organization that is taking a much more aggressive and effective strategy when dealing with anti-agriculture activist groups.

Protect The Harvest was created to fight back and defend American families, farmers, hunters, and animal owners from the growing threat posed by the radical animal rights movement. They have three objectives: inform, protect, and respond. Protect The Harvest is a group of concerned citizens that is seeking to aggressively educate and communicate with the general public wherever those elements, including extremist animal rights groups, pose a threat to farmers, ranchers or hunters. According to the group’s web site, “Protect The Harvest exists to defend our way of life, preserve our food freedom and stand up for America’s farmers, hunters, and animal owners.”

Protect the Harvest was born out of the battle with HSUS that took place in Missouri and North Dakota. When farmers in these states found themselves on the losing end of voter referendums that would have devastated their animal agriculture industry, they got mad and got organized. With the help of Protect the Harvest and other grassroots farm organizations, they beat back HSUS in North Dakota and reversed the ballot box gains in Missouri. What is even more amazing than the founding of Protect the Harvest is the man who singlehandedly funded and gave birth to this incredibly effective movement.

Forrest Lucas is best known for the oil company that carries his name and for his involvement in racing and for securing the naming rights on the stadium in which the Indianapolis Colts play football. For me, the real accomplishment of Forrest Lucas is what he has done for agriculture. Growing up in rural Southern Indiana, Lucas learned how to work hard. He began his road to success driving long-haul trucks. When maintenance costs cut into his bottom line, he did what many farmers do — he innovated. He invented a lubricant that reduced his trucking costs and Lucas Oil products was on its way. In addition to oil and racing, Lucas is a cattleman.  He is one of the largest breeders in the nation and is passionate about agriculture.

The kind of no nonsense, get it done approach Lucas has taken in his oil company was put into the Protect the Harvest organization. They are not afraid to take on groups like HSUS head on. And it is not just ads and fancy PR, they do what it takes to defend agriculture.  Protect the Harvest is not above retaining a team of lawyers to file legal challenges, hire lobbyists to fight for or against state or federal legislation, or fund a grass roots movement to mobilize public opinion in favor of US farmers.  Unlike many farm groups who tend to be reactionary, Protect the Harvest goes on the offensive before activists mount a slander campaign against agriculture.

Protect the Harvest has a solid base of support in states such as Missouri, Iowa, and the Dakotas where farmers have been on the front lines of the animal welfare movement. Now, however, they are growing in other Midwest farm states including Indiana. Lucas recently invited over 400 Indiana farm leaders to his mansion in Carmel for a pep talk on Protect the Harvest.  Everyone in the room was impressed with his vision, his focus, and his commitment to supporting agriculture. The room erupted into applause when he said, “I want my legacy to be that I was the guy who beat HSUS.”  While Mr. Lucas is very rich and very powerful, he cannot and should not go it alone. Farmers and others who support agriculture and our rural way of life need to support this organization.

One of my personal heroes General George Patton once said, “A good solution applied with vigor now is better than a perfect solution applied ten minutes later.” This is the approach of Protect the Harvest.  While academics discuss the right balance with consumers on the animal welfare question and industry groups post questions on social media channels, Protect the Harvest is exposing the these activists for what they are frauds.  Protect the Harvest deserves your support or as the good General would say, “Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory.”

 By Gary Truitt

Annual Putnam Co. Farm Bureau meeting

Be watching for details on this year's Annual meeting to be held at 11:30am at the Putnam Co. Fairgrounds, Community Building on Friday, Feb. 22.  Yes that's 11:30 in the a.m. as we attempt to boost our attendance by finishing the meeting in the daylight.  Meal cost will be $3 per member.  Merrie Nees will be catering this year with a great meal being planned.  We will meet and take care of some of our business between 11:30 and 12,  Eat our great buffet meal from 12 - 12:30, and then introduce our keynote speaker, the results of the policy recommendations, the election, and recognize the board members retiring from the board.  We hope to conclude the meeting as close to 1pm as possible.

Indiana Ag Education teacher reaches Top 16 in Discussion Meet

Indiana Discussion Meet Contestant Uses Experience in the Classroom

Posted on 14 January 2013 by Andy Eubank

The goal for the Indiana winner of Discussion Meet was to make the American Farm Bureau Young Farmer and Rancher Sweet 16. Sunday night at Farm Bureau’s annual meeting in Nashville, TN Julie Thalen was “ecstatically excited” when she learned she was one of the top 16. The agricultural education teacher at Clinton Central High School didn’t advance beyond that round, but the experience will help her in the classroom, and that was another of her priorities.

She explains Discussion Meet “really opens up the doors and shows what the really important issues are happening in agriculture. These topics were picked last year but you look at what’s happening, what’s important and where are we headed. And I think a lot of it is long term thinking about we are doing in Farm Bureau and the whole agriculture sector. So for me it’s things I can actually apply in my classroom, apply in life as a Farm Bureau member, but also just apply with the different things that I’m liking and enjoying and doing within the agriculture sector to be prepared for things down the road.”

Topics discussed at the national meet included immigration reform and encouraging more people to move home to rural communities. Discussion Meet judging is based on knowledge of the issue and ability to participate and bring others into the discussion, so it is not a debate. That can be challenging.

“The sweet 16 competition was very intense. There were 4 of us, one from California, one from Illinois and another from Michigan and it was a very intense conversation. We all had our openings and our closings but the meat of the Discussion Meet is actually the discussion that you have in the middle 25 minutes. It’s a very interesting time and there are a lot of different items that get brought up and how you sort through them and what you discuss or spend more time on is what really makes the points for the actual contest.”

To prepare there was continual research including meetings with many Hoosiers across the state. Hear more in the full HAT interview: