10/26/06 Disaster Declaration & Estate Tax Relief

Disaster declarations & estate tax relief. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. USDA has designated the entire state of Louisiana and four counties in Texas as primary natural disaster areas due to losses caused by drought and excessive heat. Three counties in Nevada and one in Washington state were designated primary disaster areas due to wildfires. In all cases, the counties and parishes adjacent to the areas named as primary disaster areas will also qualify for federal assistance. All qualified farm operators in the designated areas are eligible for low interest emergency (EM) loans from USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA), provided eligibility requirements are met. Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of the declaration to apply for loans to help cover part of their actual losses. Prospects for estate tax relief in a new Congress may hinge on House Democrats instead of Senate Democrats, as it has before the elections. All but four Senate Democrats voted in August to block action on permanent estate tax relief, but should they control the Senate after the elections, expected finance chair Max Baucus would likely push a compromise. American Farm Bureau tax adviser Pat Wolff explains. WOLFF: Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Susan Allen. PETA is patting themselves on the back for the impact they have had recently on the NBA and this goes well beyond securing Dennis Rodman as a spokesperson, PETA people actually believe that their animal rights efforts impacted the NBA' S recent decision to make the move from leather to synthetic basketballs. While we don't really know who was playing point guard for PETA in regards to the NBA's switch from leather balls it is rumored the Houston rockets owner Leslie Alexander might have influenced NBA decision makers as it is a well known fact he is a donor to both PETA and it's side kick, Physician's Committee for Responsible medicine. The word on the street is that Rocket cheerleaders have even worn animal rights shirts to dance their routines in. Poor PETA they might not be basking in their basketball coup for long as rumor on the streets is that many players like Shaquille O'Neil absolutely can't stand dribbling "pleather" basketball. Thanks Susan. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.