I support fast-track trade negotiating authority, so that the Administration can be in a better position to tear down international trade barriers. We must, at the same time, work to ensure that our trading partners adhere to all existing trade agreements. Farmers need lower taxes. Eliminating the estate tax on family farmers will ensure that farms can be passed on to the next generation. According to USDA figures, farmers are six times more likely to face inheritance taxes than other Americans.
Family farmers work hard and pay taxes throughout their lives.
They build a productive and successful family business, and hope eventually to pass it on to their children. Farmers who don't have cash available to pay the estate tax are often forced to sell their farms to pay the government. Farmers need adequate risk management tools. Last year, the federal government provided a significant amount of money in emergency disaster assistance to farmers. Perhaps this would not have been necessary if farmers could access, in the first instance, well-designed risk management tools.