St. Helena Star - Thompson reintroduces legislation to help family farms

Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) has reintroduced legislation that would bring tax relief to the owners of family farms and open spaces. The “Family Farm Preservation and Conservation Estate Tax” bill would defer the payment of the estate tax for families as long as the land remains in agriculture or open space.

“The current estate tax unfairly burdens family farmers, who are typically land-rich but cash-poor,” Thompson said. “The estate tax forces these families to sell off their land to pay the tax. The breakup of family farms in many places means selling to developers, which causes a loss of key agricultural land and open space. By easing this tax burden on families, they can keep their livelihoods.”

Thompson has introduced similar estate tax legislation in previous Congresses to aid family farms. The estate tax was reinstated at the end of last year and applies to estates in excess of $5 million. In 2013, the estate tax will apply to estates over $1 million, meaning even more family farms will be forced to sell their farms to pay the estate tax.

The legislation introduced by Congressman Thompson would allow owners of a family farm to defer payment of any estate tax as long as the property remains in farming. If the heir decides to take the property out of agriculture, they will pay the estate tax at the current appraised value of the land.