The Fort Dodge Messenger’s editorial board praised Senator Grassley’s work on the tax reform bill and his unique perspective in advocating for farmers. Grassley, a lifelong family farmer and a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and Senate Finance Committee, is one of only two farmers serving in the U.S. Senate. Grassley penned an op-ed in December and gave a floor speech earlier this month on tax reform and agriculture.
 
Tax Changes Help Iowa’s Farmers
Editorial
January 23, 2018
 
The new tax law passed by Congress late in 2017 and signed by President Donald Trump will help Iowa farmers, according to Sen. Charles Grassley.
 
The Iowa Republican is the senior member and former chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. He also serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee. He is one of only three GOP senators to sit on both committees. He worked hard during the debate in Congress concerning the tax changes to make sure that the provisions adopted would be beneficial to farmers and all other Iowans. He is especially well-qualified to assess how the new tax law will affect agriculture.
...
Given the huge importance of the farm economy to the prosperity of our state, the senator’s perspective on how farmers will fare under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is relevant to everyone who calls Iowa home.
…
The new law simplifies the tax law and provides tax cuts for most taxpayers. Here are the key changes it makes that Grassley says will especially help the farm community:
 
  • It provides broad tax relief to small businesses including farmers and ranchers. That will make it easier for them to generate the capital necessary to invest more heavily in their enterprises.
 
  • An expanded Section 179 of the tax code enhances the ability of farmers to finance overhead costs. More expenses can be deducted in the year they are incurred. Cash accounting is made more available to farmers.
 
  • It lowers taxes on capital investments and has a business income deduction. These provisions that “will help level the playing field between farms that file as corporations and those that file as individuals.”
 
  • A doubling of the estate tax exemption will make it easier for Iowans to keep farms in their family as they pass from one generation to the next.
...
Throughout his long service in Washington, Grassley has sought to make tax laws fairer and reduce the tax burden.
...
We applaud Grassley for working diligently to move us closer to its achievement. The new tax law is a giant step in the right direction. Grassley deserves praise for helping bring about its enactment.
 
-30-