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VOL. 26 No. 41
Reagan signs Tax Act;
Farms and farmers profit
BY DEBBIE KOONTZ
LANCASTER President
Reagan signed the Economic
Recovery Tax Act, Wednesday a
plan which, according to Peat,
Marwick, Mitchell and Co., the
international accounting firm, will
present immediate tax savings
opportunities to a tarmer’s
business as well as to each in
dividual farmer.
The overall effects the Act will
have are as yet not entirely clear.
But says Steven Hoffman,
manager at the accounting firm,
"The new tax Act, which is the
most radical revision of the tax law
since the internal revenue code
was amraended in 1954, is gomg to
have a substantial effect on vir
tually everyone’s investment
strategies and financial and estate ,
planning. “The potential benefits
under the Act will not accrue
automatically. To take optimum
advantage of the changes, careful
planning is necessary and the tax
payers should begin reviewing the
major provisions of the Act to
determine the impact it will have
Inside
This
Week’s...
It was a real battle at the Berks f;f-A hog show and the winners are on A 36
It you missed going to the Lycoming f-air, read all about it on page C2b
Authentic Amish quilts and nostalgia combine to support a one-room school
on Page Dfa
York County 4-H ers anoint new horse show ring hnd out how on page DIO
Co-ops, farm groups
take stand on HB 767
HARRISBURG - A total of ten
farm organizations, dairy
cooperatives, and individual
farmers testified Wednesday
during a hearing before the House
Agricultural and Rural Affairs
Committee. The session was called
to discuss House Bill 767 which
would amend the Pennsylvania
Agricultural Conjmodities Market
Act of 1968, PL 359, No. 179-1968
Introduced by Representative
James L. Wnght, Jr. (R-Bucks,
142nd) on March 9, 1981, the bill
has met with delays through the
course of leg’slative action.
However, Committee Chairman'
Joseph Grieco (R-Lycoming,
Northumberland, 84th) stated he
hopes to havp the bill on the
calendar before the end of Sep
tember. x
What has made HB 767 create
such a stir on its way through the
democratic process is the fact that
this bill .would call for some
dramatic changes in r the
agricultural commodities
on their financial structure and
overall tax planning.”
Perhaps the biggest savings tor
the farm will be the possibility tor
couples to leave estates worth 1.2
million dollars tax tree to heirs and
not have federal tax to pay. An
entire estate can be given to a
survivor with no federal death tax
due tor surviving spouses of
decedants who die after this year.
An estate of up to $600,000 can be
lett at'death with no federal tax by
the mid 1980’s. It starts rising
gradually next year, moving from
$175,000 to $225,000.
Also, for decendants to use lower
value rules on estates for farms,
the decedant needn’t have been as
active in management operations
as was necessary under the
Revenue Service interpretation of
the law.
Another big change due to the
Act is the possibility of writing oft
buildings over a 15-year period.
More depreciation can be claimed
m the earlier years than later.
five-year plan
(Turn to Page A 39)
marketing program.
It would:
expand the meaning of the
term ‘producer’ to include cor
porations, associations and other
business units in addition to in
dividuals;
s eliminate, any reference to
volume in the voting of a proposed
marketing program. Approval of a
program will occur if two-thirds of
those voting vote yes on the
program;
« eliminate the provision which
provides for block voting of a
cooperative for its members.
EJvery affected producer would be
granted the opportunity to vote;
eliminate the section that
would cause the Secretary of
Agriculture to terminate a
marketing program when more
than 33% percent of the affected
producers requested such ter
mination; and
✓ reduce to three from five
years the length of time a
marketing program must bo in
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August S, 1911
First place winners in the Lebanon Holstein
Association Field Day lodging contest were:
from left Arden BHss Men’s Division; Sherry
Hoffer, Women’s Division; Dale Weaver,
Junior 14-19 Division; and Kevin Myer, Junior
Lebanon Holstein breeders
visit Mil-Harv Farms
BY SHEILA MILLER
BELLEGROVE The threat of
thunderstorms and the intensely
close humidity that enveloped the
fertile Lebanon valley on Tuesday
evening did not discourage a large
number of area dairy producers
from turning out at Mil-Harv farm
effect before the Secretary of
Agriculture must call for a
(Turn to Page A3l).
HOMEANDYOUIH
Homestead Notes, C 2; Home on
the Range, -C6; Farm Women
Societies, C 8; Kid’s Korner, Cl 2;
Chicken Cooking Contest, Cl 4;
FFA, CIS; 4-H’ers in Mass., CIS;
Conservation School, C 23.
COLUMNS
Editorials A 10; Now is the time,
A 10; Ask the VMD, B 4; Ida’s
Notebook, C 5; Joyce Bupp’s
column] 04; Ladies' have you
heard?. Oil; Farm Talk, Dll.
Guernsey breeders gather, A2B;
Milk market new, A 37; Dairy
Photo Album, C 22; Berks Holstein
field day, CIO; -Dairy prmcess
promotes, C3U; Blair DHIA, C 32;
Frankhn DHIA, C 34; Chester
DUIA, D 4; Somerset DHIA, D 5.
DAIRY
13 and Under Division (this youngster agreed
with Judge William Pettit far right on 100
percent of the placings). Also on hand for the
Tuesday evening festivities was Lebanon
County Dairy Princess Joanne Weidman.
for the annual Lebanon Holstein
Association field day.
As the dairy families gathered
for a fun, informative evening, the
uncomfortable weather disap
peared as the sun slowly sank
below the rooftops of the nearby
village homes. But this daily evei*
went unobserved by most of th&
dairy producers who were gazing
intently at three classes of
Holsteins rather than a .hazy
sunset.
The black and white subjects of
close scrutiny were the 3-year.-
olds, dry cows, and heifers
belonging to Harvey T.
Bomgardner and family. Harvey
and Mildred have been farming at
the 140-acre home farm since 1947
when they took over for his father
The current operation, which
includes son Mark, 31, and family,
son Dave, 18, and daughter Jane,
21, has increased by an additional
100-acre farm, along with another
100 acres of rented ground.
The yellow Dutch-style barn that
has been expanded over the years
with freestall additions holds Mil-
Harv’s 104 head of registered
Holsteins along with their 75 head
of young stock. The 116 stalls are of
various designs, some hanging,
some homemade, with elevations
as high as 17 inches. “I believe in
having the cows up and out of the
manure,” Harvey explains.
The Bomgardners raise all their
own feed, 100 acres of alfalfa and
100 acres of com for haylage and
silage with the rest planted to
cereal crops. The grain is ground
at the farm and batch-mixed the
only thing added that’s not raised
$7.50 Per Year
by the Bomgardners is the protein
soybean meal.
When it comes time to feed the
milking string, not every cow is
treated the same. According to son
Dave, the cows are split into two
groups, high and low, based on
production. While they’re in the
parlor, the high'cows are fed 15
pounds of concentrate. Out in the
bunk, they receive an additional 5
pounds ’'of concentrate with 30
pounds of corrr silage and 20
pounds of haylage.
This was the second time in 20
years che Lebanon Holstein
breeders were guests at Mil-Harv
farm. In those two decades,
however, the farm has seen con
siderable changes and has led the
way with innovations.
According to Harvey, his
operation was one of the first ui the
county to have a milking parlor.
His first one, was installed in 1954,
and later replaced m 1970 with a
double-six herringb 'ne. He recalls
with pride how he had the first
bunk feeder in the county built in
1957 and was the first to install
contour strips in his fields. And he
(Turn to Page A 34)
Ag Progress Days is right around
the corner and Lancaster Farming is
gearing up to honor the annual event
with a special issue, coming out
Saturday, August 22. Inside this
issue, subscribers will receive a full
- schedule of events, exhibitor list and a
map ot where to go and what to see.
Advertising deadline lor this special
issue is Monday, August 17.