Thatcher: 2025 Will Be A Busy Year In D.C. For Agriculture

Most eyes are focused on the Farm Bill, or lack thereof, but that is not the only issue farm county needs to watch as 2024 draws to a close, and we start a new year.  Mary Kay Thatcher, Senior Manager Federal Government and Industry Relations for Syngenta, said taxes will be a topic of note early in 2025.

“We have so many tax provisions that will expire, and they're critical ones for Ag. You know you're thinking about estate taxes, Stepped Up Basis, 199A deduction, you know, individual income tax rates.  It's going to be massive, and I strongly suspect it goes through in the first 100 days.  We got to make sure in agriculture we get our act together and we don't have every Ag group out fighting for something different.  We got to stick together on this one for sure."

Another pressing issue, that Thatcher said Congress needs to address in the new year, is Ag labor.

“We've got, on average, farmers can't get 21% of the labor they need.  That's pretty amazing, and if we come in, and all of a sudden we get a mandatory E-Verify put on farmers and ranchers, or a meatpacker, we know there's a lot of illegals there. So, E-Verify without any reform would be terrible for us. So, it's going to be interesting.  I mean we have trouble with labor issues every year. We have trouble passing immigration reform.  But we really better be on our toes with this one.”

But, is there an appetite to make those needed changes in Washington D.C.?  Find out by listening to our entire conversation with Mary Kay Thatcher:

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