Introducing Randy Smith

I'm pleased to announce that Randy Smith has joined the Yankee staff as a credit analyst/tax specialist in our Newport office. Randy has worked part-time for Yankee since July 2009 as a farm tax assistant. In 2010 Randy passed the Farm Credit Tax Specialist exam, and he became a full-time employee on December 31st.

Previously Randy worked in various engineering jobs for Vermont Electric Cooperative and the Vermont Electric Division of Citizens Communications Company in Newport. He holds a BS degree in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

2011 Director Nominees

The Nominating Committee has nominated the following individuals for director:

Region 1:
Celeste Kane-Stebbins, Sheldon, VT

Region 2:
Walter Gladstone, Bradford, VT
CJ Manchester, Cambridge, VT

Region 3:
Paul Harlow, Westminster, VT
Paul Franklin, Plainfield, NH

One director from each region will be elected at the 2011 Annual Meeting which will be held in four sectional meetings April 4-12, 2011. Nominations from the floor are allowed, but may be made only at the first sectional meeting on April 4 in Middlebury. Voting members as of February 28, 2011 will be eligible to vote at Annual Meeting.

Directors serve for 3-year terms, and are subject to term limits of four 3-year terms. Both Ms. Stebbins and Mr. Gladstone are incumbents in their first term. There is no incumbent running in Region 3 this year because current director Paul Doton has reached his term limit. The next time after 2011 that there will be an "open" seat in each region due to term limits, and the current director who would reach their term limit at that time, is as follows:

Region 1 - 2015 - Rocky Giroux (if re-elected in 2012)
Region 2 - 2012 - Paul Gingue
Region 3 - 2019 - Paul Saenger (if re-elected in 2013 and 2016)

See this post for definitions of the regions and contact information for the Nominating Committee.

Promotions - Northern Region

I am pleased to announce two promotions in the Northern Region, which includes our St. Albans, Newport and Chazy offices.

Mike Farmer is being promoted to Senior Vice President/Regional Manager; he will remain the St. Albans office manager. Loren Petzoldt is being promoted to Assistant Vice President/Branch Manager in the Newport office. Both promotions will be effective 3/01/11, upon Ken Buzzell's retirement.

Mike has 21 years of experience with Farm Credit. He was hired as a loan officer in the White River Jct. office of the Connecticut Valley association in 1989. In 1998 Mike moved to the St. Albans office as a senior loan officer. He was promoted to assistant vice president in 2005 and vice president in 2008. Mike is a Farm Credit tax specialist and a certified general real estate appraiser in Vermont. He holds a degree in agricultural and resource economics from the University of Vermont.

Loren has 24 years of experience with Farm Credit. He worked for the Farm Credit Administration as an associate examiner for three years beginning in 1986. He was hired as a loan officer in the Newport office of the Connecticut Valley association in 1989. In 2004 Loren was promoted to senior loan officer, and in 2005 he began to split his time between the St. Albans and Newport offices. Loren is a Farm Credit tax specialist. He holds a degree in applied economics and business management from Cornell University.

Congratulations to Mike and Loren!

Please note we are posting a loan officer position in St. Albans. Details on our web site: Career Opportunities.

Steve Taylor Promotes Cabot Cheese

This YouTube video promoting Cabot Cheese features Yankee Director Steve Taylor:



What about Evelyn's Jack Cheese and Mill Hollow Cheese??

Farm to Plate

Yesterday the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund released the Executive Summary of the Farm to Plate Strategic Plan: a 10-year strategic plan for Vermont's food system.

Ellen Kahler, executive director of the VSJF, made the presentation at a press conference in the statehouse in Montpelier. Also speaking were Governor Peter Shumlin, Secretary of Agriculture Chuck Ross, Secretary of Commerce Lawrence Miller, and numerous members of the legislature. All were enthusiastic about this initiative. House Agriculture Committee Chair Carolyn Partridge said to remember just four words: "Vermont agriculture means business."

Click here for more info
Download the Executive Summary (4 MB PDF file)

Yankee participation in the Farm to Plate initiative over the past 18 months has included:

- VP/Operations John Peters participated in a focus group on 11/18/09
- Records & Tax Specialist Lisa Gravel participated in a working session on 3/03/10
- Vice President Jeff Temple participated in the Statewide Food Summit on 4/10/10

Senior Vice President Ken Button has also participated. In 2009 Kit Perkins visited Ken in his office and spent a couple of hours learning about Farm Credit. Kit is the Farm to Plate project manager at VSJF.

New Payroll Tax Rates for 2011

These are important changes for every employer:

http://www.irs.gov/pub/newsroom/notice_1036.pdf

Tax Tip Newsletters

For the latest edition of our Tax Tip Newsletter please click here. You will find articles about the following:

1) Reminder - Federal Tax Deposit Coupons No Longer Available
2) Changes for 2010
3) Self Employes Health Insurance Premiums will Reduce SE Tax for 2010
4) Domestic Production Activities Deduction

If you missed our July issue - it featured the following:

1) HIRE Act and Agricultural Business
2) General Payroll Tax Overview
3) Recent Tax Law Change to Payroll Deposits May Affect You.

Liz Bayne - Appraiser

I am pleased to announce that Liz Bayne has earned the status of Certified General Real Estate Appraiser in Vermont.

The requirements to become a Certified General Real Estate Appraiser are daunting. They include 300 classroom hours in a rigorous training program developed by the Appraisal Qualifications Board, a board of The Appraisal Foundation, and administered by the individual states. Another requirement is 3,000 hours of supervised appraisal practice. The applicant must also pass a comprehensive final examination, in addition to tests in the various training sessions.

Liz completed her course work and passed the comprehensive exam last fall. This week she completed the final step in the process, which was the acceptance of her appraisal practice hours by the Vermont Board of Real Estate Appraisers.

Liz has advised Farm Credit customers on complex tax issues for more than 30 years. She is a Farm Credit Tax Specialist and an IRS Enrolled Agent. Her appraisal expertise together with her tax expertise present a unique combination that we hope will benefit Farm Credit customers for many years to come.

Special thanks to Vice President/Director-Appraisal Services Geoff Yates for mentoring Liz during her appraiser trainee period.

Congratulations, Liz, on this significant accomplishment!