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Congress wrestles with tax extenders

grassley-chuckCongress continues to wrestle with the tax extenders package.

Republicans and Democrats are reportedly working on a compromise that would make permanent a few of the tax breaks that expired at the end of 2013 and extend others through 2015. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley hopes they’ll have it ready for a vote by next week.

“Some people say the House is going to adjourn on December 11th. Well, it has to be done before then,” Grassley says.  “I’m kind of suspicious—I think we’ll be in until December 18th.  But it brings it up really to the edge where hopefully things happen.”

Of particular interest to agriculture are the biodiesel tax credit and the Section 179 deduction for business equipment, including farm machinery. Grassley says the inaction on Section 179 is especially bad for farmers and farm equipment manufacturers like John Deere, “because the expensing of depreciation, at a half-a-million dollars, has not been passed and people aren’t buying combines and John Deere is laying off people.”

It’s also possible that Congress will wait until next year to act and make the tax provisions retroactive.

AUDIO: Excerpts from Grassley’s Tuesday conference call with ag reporters

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