December 2025 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN 19 The Impact of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on Generational Transition and Estate Planning PAMELA EPP OLSEN | MANAGING PARTNER OF PAMELA EPP OLSEN LAW, PC, LLO tax exemption and to add that unused exemption to the surviving spouse’s available exemption amount. The Act’s Future Impact The Act’s provisions give planners and ag producers some breathing room and some certainty for the foreseeable future with regard to the exemption amounts and transition planning opportunities. For instance, some ag producers engaged in significant gifting above annual exclusion amounts in the period leading up to July 4, 2025, in an effort to take advantage of the higher exemption amounts that were expected to sunset at the end of the year. The rules in place before the Act were passed provided that gifts given up to the applicable exemption amounts in effect through 2025 would be honored and no tax consequences would be imposed if the exemption amounts dropped in 2026. For these donors, had the exemption amounts actually decreased to levels below the amount the donors had gifted before 2026, the donors would have had no further federal estate tax exemption amounts available for future transfers, but the gifts given up to the donor’s available exemption amount prior to 2026 would not later have been subject to tax. Now that the exemption amounts have increased to $15 million, those owners will have some additional exemption amounts available to be used in other planning strategies on and after Jan. 1, 2026. With no expiration period embedded in the Act’s provisions, some commentators refer to the Act’s provisions as “permanent.” While the Act’s terms do mean there is no longer a deadline of Dec. 31, 2025, by which to either take advantage of higher federal estate/gift tax exemption amounts or to lose the higher exemption opportunity, the increased exemption amounts under the Act are only permanent so long as Congress makes no changes to the Act’s terms. With a change of control in Congress could come changes to the rules put in place by the Act. For now, however, the Act does give individuals with potential exposure to federal estate taxes some time to consider thoughtfully with their advisors how to minimize or avoid federal estate and gift tax exposure for lifetime gifts above the annual exclusion amounts and for transfers made at death. Time to Plan The Act’s provisions give ag producers time to think strategically and to plan wisely with regard to the transition of operational assets during the owner’s lifetime and/ or at the owner’s death. Ag professionals as a whole are stewardship-focused and long-range planners within their professional sphere. For operations to remain vigorous for generations to come, thoughtful planning for transition of the business with an eye on the federal estate and gift tax rules in effect needs to be a priority. The Act’s provisions give individuals at least some additional time to build and implement a prudent plan for the stewardship of these operational assets. ~NC~ Editor’s Note: Pamela Epp Olsen is the managing partner of Pamela Epp Olsen Law, PC, LLO, where her practice focuses on issues of succession and transition planning, with an emphasis on transition considerations for farming and agribusiness entities. Olsen’s transition practice also includes assisting clients in the areas of elder law and public benefits counseling. Olsen is a dairy farmer’s daughter and a rancher’s wife. Her husband, Douglas Olsen, manages a commercial cow-calf and farming operation in Banner County. For operations to remain vigorous for generations to come, thoughtful planning for transition of the business with an eye on the federal estate and gift tax rules in effect needs to be a priority.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTMxNTA5