The federal government on Friday released an early list of regions that will be eligible for Livestock Tax Deferral in 2024.
The early release is designed to provide producers with “more certainty” heading into the summer months, Ottawa said in a release.
Along with the regions that will be eligible for livestock tax deferment – mostly in parts of Alberta and British Columbia (see map below) - the government has also instituted a buffer zone so that those producers on the edges of the deferral region may be included as well, if deemed necessary.
Weather, climate, and production data from across Canada will continue to be monitored throughout the remainder of the season and impacted regions will be added to the deferral region if and when they meet the criteria, the release added.
“By announcing livestock tax deferral regions earlier in the year and applying buffer zones to increase flexibility, we’re helping farmers make informed decisions and build up their resilience,” Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay said.
The livestock tax deferral provision allows livestock producers in certain areas who are forced to sell all or part of their breeding herd due to drought, flooding or excess moisture to defer a portion of their income from sales until the following tax year. The income may be at least partially offset by the cost of reacquiring breeding animals, thus reducing the tax burden associated with the original sale.
Typically, the government has not announced the livestock tax deferral provision until after an area has already experienced extreme weather.
Ag Canada it used preliminary scientific data, as well as consultation with industry, to produce the initial list of prescribed tax deferral regions.
Using this preliminary data, some regions are likely to recover forage capacity based on actual conditions later in the growing season, the release said. However, once a region is prescribed, it will remain eligible for the deferral for the taxation year.
The full list of designated regions and buffer regions can be found here:
https://agriculture.canada.ca/en/agricultural-production/weather/livestock-tax-deferral-provision/2024-list-prescribed-regions
