Cap and Trade
Standing in this corner, we have the cap and trade legislators weighing in at 290 pounds and in the other corner we’ve got the American farmer weighing in at (well if the American Farm Bureau Federation has its way, a lean and mean 300 pounds. Let’s get ready to rumble. Representing farmers and ranchers from all 50 states, who grow all types of crops and livestock, means the American Farm Bureau Federation must weigh in on a multitude of issues. American Farm Bureau President Bob Stallman says two holdover issues will have a heightened focus this year – climate change & energy policy and estate and capital gains taxes. “ For the climate change energy policy campaign issue we hope to stop any legislation passing that is composed of a mandatory cap-and-trade program as has been passed by the house, but we want to do something positive and the positive side of that is to pass a comprehensive energy policy that does have a focus on renewables, that does have a focus on increasing low carbon energy, but does it in a fashion that doesn’t downsize American agriculture or put a big burden on the united states economy. We are in a situation with estate taxes where at the end of 2010, the old law comes back which has a very low exemption and a very high tax rate. It prevents farmers and ranchers from passing down their operation to the next generation.
