Tax Preparation for Your Farm

Feeling overwhelmed when it comes to filing taxes for your farm? Tax preparation should begin with proper record keeping to ensure you have the necessary information for filing when the time comes. It’s important to know what sort of tax records you need to keep, how key tax provisions impact you and how the Schedule F works, among other things. Hear tips on how to best navigate this process from farmer and Drake University Resilient Agriculture Coordinator Matt Russell, and attorney and agricultural tax specialist Kristine Tidgren.

Matt Russell is resilient agriculture coordinator at the Drake University Agricultural Law Center. He farms with his husband, Patrick Standley. They grow produce, eggs and beef on their 110-acre Coyote Run Farm in rural Lacona. They sell directly to customers in central Iowa, use multiple federal and state farm programs and hire a professional to help them prepare their taxes for the greatest benefit to their farm.

Kristine Tidgren is the assistant director for the Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation at Iowa State University, where she analyzes legal developments impacting producers and practitioners. She writes numerous articles on current agricultural law issues, teaches an agricultural law class to undergraduate students and is a frequent speaker on agricultural and tax law topics. She grew up on a farm in west-central Iowa.