Friday, January 20, 2012

NH Risk Management Workshop

The 2012 New Hampshire Risk Management Workshop for Agricultural Professionals was held on January 13th. Around 50 people gathered at the Holiday Inn in Concord. Jeff Temple, Vice President, and Clara Hall, Credit Analyst, represented Yankee Farm Credit at the meeting. There was also representation from the Bedford Office of Farm Credit East.

Lorraine Merrill, NH Commissioner of Agriculture, started the day off stressing the importance of collaboration and cooperation of knowledge and resources across the different agriculture agencies. She also reminded us to encourage participation in the 2012 Census. She touched on one of NH's biggest challenges, the growth of Boston and developments in New Hampshire. In the 2007 Census NH was 5th in the nation for largest percentage of agriculture land getting developed at 10-20% (for comparison, VT is at 2-5%).

Marge Kilkelly, Deputy Director of Eastern Regional Conference/Council of State Government, followed Commissioner Merrill and discussed the 2012 Farm Bill. She brought to our attention that if the Farm Bill doesn’t go through this year there will be 37 programs lost, but she remained optimistic because there are 8 Members in the House and 3 Members in the Senate from North East Agriculture. Ms. Kilkelly expressed that her number one priority is to make a plan within the NE region.

Dave Bishop, Bedford Branch Manager, Farm Credit East, spoke next about the plan for Agriculture Credit over the next few years. He addressed the most significant influences in planning for credit as being the health and future of our customers, skilled staff, cost and availability of capital and the ability to manage risk. His take-aways for our customers were the importance of Working Capital and the need for Self Evaluation. He also noted the significance an FSA guarantee can carry for different situations.

Gene Gantz, USDA Risk Management Agency, presented on Risk Management Plans. He handed out a Risk Management Checklist (which is available at each office) that is a great planning tool for farmers, and he talked about how vital it is to know what your insurance covers so that you know what to expect when you need to cash in.

James Phinizy, the NH State Director for the Farm Service Agency, followed lunch and talked about different programs that FSA offers. Mr. Phinizy explained the Emergency response process which starts with the 5 county offices who contact farmers, extension offices and NRCS in order to compile notes. If a natural disaster is declared it is considered at a committee level first then goes to the state and then on to the national level; once it is approved applications begin to be processed. Mr. Phinizy also touched on NAP which is a non-insured assistance program available for products without current crop insurance accessible.

Greg Thompson, of Freedom Energy Logistics, educated us on ‘Deregulation’ which is not energy conservation or an increase in energy efficiency but a way to ‘pay less for what you use’. In 1999 federal government enacted a law forcing local electric utilities to allow other electricity suppliers to carry power over their lines, creating a competitive environment. There are currently 17 deregulated states, NH being one of them (VT is still regulated). Freedom Energy Logistics ‘aggregates’ individuals giving them the same advantage and buying power that big companies have and thus creating a lower cost.

Rick Ellsmore, State Conservationist with NRCS, talked briefly about programs they are working on including: the 90/10 solution (Conservation Delivery Streamline Initiative), EQUIP, WHIP, AMAP, CSP, Easement programs, and their Local Work Groups which meet and discuss needs for each county.

Lisa Townson, Assistant Director of UNH Cooperative Extension, ended the day letting us know updates with the extension office. The budget decreased by $1.7 million and because of that they have lost 23 positions since the first of the year. That being said, they are working on regionalizing and specializing their staff and will rely on grants to cover 35% of their budget. They are excited about 4 new program teams: 1) Food and Agriculture 2) Natural Resources 3) Youth and Families and 4) Community Economic Development.

Friday, January 13, 2012

2012 Director Nominees

The Nominating Committee has nominated the following individuals for director:

Region 1:
Rocklyn A. Giroux, Beekmantown, NY

Region 2:
William F. Johnson, Canaan, VT
Bradley Maxwell, Coventry, VT

Region 3:
Scott C. Mitchell, Brandon, VT
Stephen H. Taylor, Plainfield, NH

One director from each region will be elected at the 2012 Annual Meeting which will be held in four sectional meetings April 9-17, 2012. Nominations from the floor are allowed, but may be made only at the first sectional meeting on April 9 at the Lake Morey Inn. Voting members as of February 29, 2012 will be eligible to vote at Annual Meeting.

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

Thursday, January 12, 2012

FarmStart - Jon and Kristie Lucas

With help from FarmStart, Jon Lucas and his family have realized their dream of owning a dairy business. Lucas Dairy, LLC purchased a 170-cow dairy herd from David Russell in Starksboro, Vermont, earlier this month.

Jon spent the past three years managing the herd with this goal in mind. This was a mutual effort between Dave and Jon. Dave spent a number of years looking for the right person to pass his business onto. Jon’s ability, commitment and passion proved him to be this person.

Jon's experience prepared him for this milestone. Jon, age 31, participated in 4-H from age 8 to 18, attended Vermont Technical College, and then spent 10 years working on dairy farms.

This is a family effort. Jon’s wife Kristie will be using the CenterPoint accounting program provided by Red Wing to do the farm records.

Jon put his business plan together and obtained the necessary financing to purchase the dairy business. His final hurdle was how to cover his startup costs, particularly while waiting for his first milk check. This is where FarmStart provided the missing piece. Lucas Dairy, LLC applied for a FarmStart investment to cover the startup costs and spring expenses.

Senior Loan Officer Sue Kelley from the Middlebury office says, "I’m very excited to be Yankee’s FarmStart Advisor for this young business!"

Monday, January 9, 2012

Urgent - IRS Mandates Disclosure for Form 1099 Filings

Understated business income is definitely an area of IRS concern. One way in which the IRS encourages the reporting of income is by requiring those making payments to individuals to report those payments on Form 1099. For 2011 tax returns, the IRS has now mandated that taxpayers indicate whether or not they have filed all required 1099s. Taxpayers and their preparers can be penalized for failing to answer this question accurately. And, of course, there continue to be penalties for the failure to file 1099s.

Don’t be surprised when your tax preparer asks you questions about your 1099 reporting. If you are currently a tax client you will be receiving a more detailed letter in the mail in the next several days. We request that you answer the questions enclosed with it and return to us so that we can properly prepare your 2011 tax return. If you are still doing your own return, be careful about answering these new questions so that you don’t receive greetings from the IRS after you file. If you need help in filing your 1099s this year, please call your local Farm Credit office.