58 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN February 2025 2024 Financial Policy Victories and 2025 Death Tax Preview KENT BACUS | EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS, NATIONAL CATTLEMEN’S BEEF ASSOCIATION As we start the new year, it is no secret that 2025 is going to be a huge year for tax policy. Republicans are in control of all three branches of government, with an important three-seat majority in the Senate, and after years of legislative gridlock, Congressional Republicans are itching to rack up some big policy wins. Couple this with the fact that President Trump has made it clear he wants to renew the tax provisions in his signature 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) before they expire at the end of 2025, and that creates a great opportunity for cattle producers to benefit from extended tax relief. At the same time, it is also important to look back on our financial policy wins from last year because there was a flurry of activity in both Congress and the Executive branch at the end of 2024 that will give significant tax and regulatory relief to cattle producers. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas granted a nationwide preliminary injunction to halt the enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), a law that was set to be enforced on Jan. 1, 2025. Considering the preliminary injunction from the federal court Texas, FinCEN temporarily suspended reporting requirements while the injunction is in place, but FinCEN will continue accepting voluntary submissions. At the time this article was written, there are currently several similar federal cases working their way through the appeals process with some decisions stating the CTA is unconstitutional and others siding with the government to enforce CTA requirements, so it is possible for the situation to change. We are continuing to pursue a longterm solution with Congress and the Trump administration and will keep producers updated as the legal process unfolds. In the meantime, NCBA is strongly encouraging producers to consult with their attorney and tax professional to determine how the CTA impacts them. Last December, the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act passed with unanimous support in the Senate and was swiftly signed into law by President Biden. This bill, sponsored by Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.), will help thousands of cattle producers who have been impacted by federal disasters such as hurricanes and wildfires receive tax relief on some of their losses. Any amount received by an individual taxpayer as compensation for expenses or losses incurred due to a qualified wildfire disaster is now excluded from taxpayer gross income, ensuring producers do not pay income tax on these payments. This applies to qualified wildfire relief payments received during tax years 2020 to 2025. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) strongly supported this bipartisan legislation because it will go a long way in helping cattle producers recover from devastating natural disasters. The 2017, TCJA provided significant tax relief for cattle producers by increasing the federal estate tax exemption, also known as the Death Tax, and bolstering certain tools such as Section 179 expensing, bonus depreciation and the Section 199A qualified business income deduction. Those tools are all set to expire at the end of 2025 and the Death Tax exemption will go from $13,610,000 per individual and $27,220,000 per couple to $5 million per individual and $10 million per couple. From NCBA’s 2024 Tax Survey, we know that these tools are extremely popular among cattle producers and that 61 percent of respondents would be impacted if the current federal estate tax threshold is reduced to those pre-2017 amounts. If you extrapolate those survey results across the entire U.S. cattle industry, it is clear to see that without legislative action, these expiring provisions will place family farms and ranches at great risk. CONTINUED ON PAGE 60 POLICY 1/4 Square • Feb. 2025 The only magazine dedicated to the Nebraska cattle industry. SCAN THE QR CODE FOR A MEDIA GUIDE or contact NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN SALES REP AMBER COLEMAN acoleman@necattlemen.org • (402) 340-1588 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN Taking space reservations for the April “Focus on Feedlots” issue of Nebraska Cattleman until Feb. 25. FEATURING: • Features on topics of interest to Nebraska’s viatal feedlot industry. • Editorial on policy issues, production tips, industry advancements and innovations and more!
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