Deal Reached to Fix Unintended Tax Break for Certain Farmers
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Congressional committees and farm groups have crafted language to fix a provision in the federal tax overhaul that gave an unintended tax advantage to farmers who sell their crops to cooperatives instead of other buyers. Both sides are now trying to get it included in a massive spending bill that needs to pass by March 23 to avert another federal government shutdown. The deal announced Tuesday is meant to keep the playing field level between co-ops and other crop buyers, ranging from local companies to agribusiness giants such as Cargill and ADM. The complex language is the product of weeks of negotiations among committee leaders and staffers with farm groups, including the National Grain and Feed Association and the National Council of Farm Cooperatives. The U.S. Department of Agriculture endorses the agreement, but the National Farmers Union opposes it.