This workshop prepares tax professionals to tackle the tax provisions relevant to agricultural producers and landowners in 2025. All attendees will receive a copy of the 2025 Agricultural Tax Issues workbook, a 200-page resource. The class will begin at 8:30 am and end at 4:30 pm.

Registration Cost:  $199  (includes lunch and refreshments)

Wisconsin Agricultural Tax Issues Course 2025 - Mauston Registration

Agenda: 

Registration and Sign-in begin at 7:45 a.m.

The 2025 Agricultural Tax Issues Course will provide a full 8 hours of CPE.

Topics in the 200+ -page Agricultural Tax Issues Workbook include:

Chapter 1: Common Tax Issues Impacting Farmers and Ranchers

This chapter addresses an assortment of timely agricultural tax issues, including the tax treatment of agricultural buildings and structures, CCC marketing assistance loans, 4-H club and FFA projects, and the sale of inherited farm assets. Additionally, the chapter reviews the valuation of unharvested crops, special use valuation, and unused carryovers flowing from the death of a farmer.

Chapter 2: Legislative and Regulatory Update

This chapter reviews new legislation and regulations impacting agricultural producers and rural landowners. Specifically, the chapter details key provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), H.R.1, applicable to farm producers and rural landowners. It also reviews changes to farm program payments made by the OBBBA. Finally, the chapter reviews regulatory updates applicable to tax professionals certifying farm taxpayers as eligible for the AGI limit exemption or for higher payment limits.

Chapter 3: Farm Lease Tax Issues 

This chapter reviews the tax consequences of common agricultural real property and personal property lease arrangements, including the rental of real property in a cash rent arrangement and a crop share arrangement. It also discusses the tax considerations of tenant improvements. Finally, this chapter discusses the taxation of personal property rentals, including when such an arrangement is a lease and when it may be a purchase contract.

Chapter 4: Farm Partnership Tax Matters

Partnerships, including LLCs taxed as partnerships, are useful entities for transferring the farm or other closely held business to the next generation – whether the successor is a family member or a key employee. This chapter presents several case studies detailing provisions that may be useful in transferring a farm through a partnership. The chapter begins by discussing self-employment tax rules applying to owners of limited partnerships and LLC members.

Chapter 5: Installment Method on the Farm

The installment sale method applies to gains from nondealer sales of property for which at least one payment is received in a tax year after the year of sale. This section reviews the gain computation, depreciation recapture, and reporting requirements for installment sales. It also discusses the issues of constructive receipt, deferred payment contracts, and electing out of the installment method.

Chapter 6: Deducting Residual Soil Fertility (A 2025 Update)

Although farmers have been taking a limited deduction for the residual fertilizer purchased along with their farmland for many years, a push to extend and expand this practice beyond the traditional approach has been growing. This chapter provides an in-depth review of the practice of allocating value to soil fertility when acquiring farmland. Included is a discussion of applicable guidance, case law, best practices, and traps for the unwary.

Chapter 7: Healthcare Options for Farmers in 2026

Healthcare is a necessity, yet options for available healthcare coverage are not always easy to find. Because many farmers and ranchers are self-employed, they often struggle to find affordable options for health insurance for themselves and their families. This chapter begins with a brief review of healthcare options available to the owners of different business types. It then reviews the options for healthcare coverage on the Marketplace in 2026, requirements for the self-employed health insurance deduction, current options for health reimbursement arrangements, and current limits for health savings accounts.

Chapter 8: Cost Recovery in 2025 and Beyond

This chapter provides a review of the 2025 and 2026 rules for expensing and depreciating farm assets. The discussion compares Section 179 and bonus depreciation and presents examples combining the deductions. Finally, the chapter reviews the rules for depreciating and expensing business vehicles, including special farm provisions, as well as a review of using the tangible property regulations on the farm. 

Chapter 9: Selling and Trading Farm Property

Calculating and reporting gains and losses on the disposition of business assets can be complex. Form 4797, Sales of Business Property, not only reports gains and losses from straightforward sales, but it is also the collection point for recognized gains calculated on Form 8824, Like-Kind Exchanges; and recognized gains and losses calculated in Section B—Business and Income-Producing Property of Form 4684, Casualties and Thefts. This chapter reviews these rules.

Chapter 10: Sample Farm Return

This chapter includes a sample individual farm federal tax return for Nick and Liz Cole (also referred to as the taxpayers). Nick and Liz operate a diversified row crop operation. This sample return includes numbers derived from the fact pattern shown below. The return is for 2024 because 2025 federal forms were not available at the time of publication.

Continuing Education

8 hours of IRS CE:

• Y7WRM-U-00395-25-I
• Y7WRM-T-00396-25-I

8 hours of Wisconsin Insurance: 6000200544

8 Hours of State CPE

8 hours of Wisconsin CLE 

Speakers

Kristiana Coutu, Senior Legal Counsel, Center for Agricultural Law & Taxation, and Director of Beginning Farmer Center Iowa State University, Ames, IA 

Kristiana is the director of the Beginning Farmer Center and counsel for the Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation at Iowa State University. As director of the Beginning Farm Center, Kristiana guides the center’s activities, which focus on providing educational resources and programming for new farmers and their professional advisors. As counsel for the Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation, Kristiana brings her passion for agriculture and experience in agricultural law and tax to provide legal analysis and educational materials for producers, policymakers, and industry stakeholders. Kristiana has focused her career on meeting the changing needs of agriculture, and her experience includes lending for the farm credit system, practicing as a certified public accountant, practicing law, and engaging in policy work. Kristiana has worked with producers and agricultural organizations across the country, giving her a unique and holistic perspective on the diversity of agriculture and the varying needs of producers.

Kristine Tidgren, Director, Center for Agricultural Law & Taxation (CALT) Iowa State University, Ames, IA

Kristine is an attorney and the Dolezal Adjunct Associate Professor in the Agricultural Education and Studies Department at ISU. Kristine enjoys researching and analyzing complex tax issues and writes and edits many articles, blog posts, and educational materials. She speaks to many groups regarding tax and legal topics throughout the year.

Accommodations

New Location: 

The Lodge At Mauston

104 Lodge Lane
Mauston WI 53948