Agricultural News
Oklahoma Producers are Reminded About Consent Form that Must Go to the IRS for Farm Program Payment Eligibility
Thu, 15 Apr 2010 6:18:05 CDT
Francie Tolle, Executive Director of USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Oklahoma reminds producers that USDA is partnering with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to reduce fraud in farm programs and streamline payment limits for family farmers. The actions are intended to strengthen the integrity and defensibility of USDA farm safety net programs and help the agricultural industry to meet requirements included in the 2008 Farm Bill.
The electronic process that USDA developed with IRS reviews data from tax returns, performs a series of calculations, and compares these values to the adjusted gross income (AGI) limitations from the 2008 Farm Bill. FSA and the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) will receive a record that indicates whether or not the program participant appears to meet the income limits. Written consent is required from each producer or payment recipient for this process. NO ACTUAL TAX DATA WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE REPORT THAT IRS SENDS TO USDA. As part of the review and evaluation process, participants whose AGI may exceed the limits will be offered an opportunity to provide third party verification or other information to validate their income.
Each individual and entity who received 2009 payments or who requests 2010 payments must complete a consent form and provide it to the IRS so compliance with AGI requirements can be verified.
"It is important that the consent form is completed correctly and that it is signed and dated. If you submit an incomplete form, it will be returned to you," said Tolle. "The form must include the complete social security number for an individual or employer identification number for a legal entity."
For entities, a consent form must be submitted by the entity and by each shareholder in such entity, to the fourth level of ownership. Individuals file on form CCC-927 and entities use form CCC-928. These forms are available online click here to jump to the USDA site download the file- or may be obtained from any FSA office.
Tolle emphasizes that failure to provide this consent form to IRS will result in ineligibility for future FSA payments and refund of payments already received. She adds that while there is specific deadline in getting this form in- that as you sign up for the 2010 farm program, now is the perfect time to also get that form filed out and sent to the IRS- it should not go with your tax returns.
"FSA's partnership with the IRS will ensure that the producers who depend upon the safety net of USDA programs will have future access to these programs by enhancing the overall integrity of the programs," said Tolle.
The limits set in the 2008 Farm Bill are $500,000 nonfarm average AGI for commodity and disaster programs; $750,000 farm average AGI for direct payments; and $1 million nonfarm average AGI for conservation programs.
"Contact your local FSA office if you have difficulty understanding how to complete the form," said Tolle. "While FSA can assist you with understanding the form, FSA is not authorized to accept completed consent forms and FSA is NOT authorized to submit these forms to IRS on your behalf."
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