— This week’s episode of “WisBusiness: the Podcast” is with Brad Olson, president of the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation.
Olson was announced as the group’s new leader last month. A member of the Polk-Burnett Farm Bureau, he farms more than 600 acres of crops in Polk County. Olson says it’s “an honor and a privilege” to be named president of the WFBF.
The discussion touches on his goals in the position and how Wisconsin farmers fared over the past year, as well as the history of Olson’s family farm. It had about 40 dairy cows up until October 2022, when the operation transitioned to crop farming only.
“I’ve been there my whole life,” he said. “We’ve been there some over 100 years as a family, so when the cows left a year ago in October, that was the first time in 100 years that cows hadn’t been milked on our farm. We’ve been there ever since grandpa moved here from Norway.”
Despite widespread dry conditions in 2023, Olson says many farmers in the state had a better harvest than expected.
“For most of us across the state, it was a pretty good crop for the weather conditions that we had … We’re surprised at what we got, we’re happy with what we got,” he said. “We would have liked more, of course, but that’s every year no matter how good it is.”
But he also said “it has been extremely tough” for dairy farmers, pointing to lower milk prices as the top factor. He expressed concern about the dwindling number of dairy farmers in the state, which was around 5,600 at the end of 2023.
“That needs to be a major concern for everybody out there,” he said.
Listen to the podcast here: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2024/wisbusiness-the-podcast-with-brad-olson-wisconsin-farm-bureau-federation/
See the full list of WisBusiness.com podcasts: https://www.wisbusiness.com/category/podcast/
— DATCP has announced two new agricultural enterprise areas covering more than 21,000 acres in Sauk and Green Lake counties.
The agency yesterday also said it is expanding an existing AEA in Monroe County by more than 20,000 acres, bringing the state’s total to 49 that now include more than 1.6 million acres.
These areas, meant to foster agricultural economic growth and environmental priorities, cover parts of 30 counties and 135 towns in the state, as well as the Bad River Reservation in northern Wisconsin.
Landowners located in these areas can enter into farmland preservation agreements, which entails committing some or all of their property to farming while maintaining soil and water conservation standards. DATCP says they may be eligible to claim the farmland preservation tax credit as well.
The new Dellona AEA in Sauk County includes more than 8,000 acres, where landowners and other local partners aim to “promote the implementation of the soil health principles and create a community for farmers to support financial and environmental stability,” the release shows.
Meanwhile, the new Marquette AEA in Green Lake County has more than 13,000 acres across the towns of Marquette, Green Lake and Kingston. Locals say they want to promote small-scale farming and regenerative ag practices, according to DATCP.
See more in the release: https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/News_Media/DATCPDesignatesExpandsAEAs2024.aspx
— The Assembly Ways and Means Committee has approved 6-4 along party lines a bill to offer a tax credit for businesses that operate child care programs for their employees.
AB 660 would offer a maximum credit of $100,000 based on several things, including the capital investment to create the program and expenses to run it. The bill was introduced separately from a package of child care bills that Assembly Republicans introduced last year.
The committee also approved three amendments to the bill, including making the credits nonrefundable and technical changes.
There was no debate on the bill during yesterday’s executive session.
— Wisconsin’s state and local tax burden in fiscal year 2022-23 rose slightly to 10% from the previous fiscal year’s historic low of 9.96%, according to a Wisconsin Policy Forum report.
Overall, state and local tax collections rose 2.5% to $36.2 billion from $35.4 billion in 2021-22. That increase was lower than the 4.1% increase in 2021-22 and the 7.2% spike in 2020-21. State and local tax burdens have largely decreased in Wisconsin over the last 50 years, according to the report.
The tax burden represents the ratio between the amount of taxes Wisconsinites paid and what they earned. The report attributes the small increase in the fiscal year that range July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023, to lagging growth in personal income, which came in at 2%. That aligns with national growth as the economy and inflation cooled down following the COVID-19 pandemic, the report notes.
Local tax collections rose by 3.2% compared to a 2% increase in 2021-22, according to the report. General property taxes rose 2.4%, to $12.5 billion from $12.2 billion.
Federal tax collections are projected to decline by 1.8% in 2023 to $69.2 billion from $70.4 billion, putting the overall tax burden at all levels of government at 29.1% of personal income. The report attributes that change in part to a slowing economy, inflation, and rising interest rates.
The state saw a 2.1% increase in total state tax revenues, from $23.78 billion in 2021-22 to $24.3 billion in 2022-23. The state tax burden stayed the same in 2022-23 at 6.7%.
Some of the state tax changes include:
- Individual income taxes rose by 2.2% in FY 2022-23 to $9.4 billion from $9.2 billion;
- Corporate income taxes dropped 7.1% to $2.75 billion from just less than $3 billion; and
- Sales tax collections grew by 6.8% to nearly $7.5 billion from $6.98 billion.
See more at WisPolitics: https://www.wispolitics.com/2024/thu-am-update-report-wisconsin-state-local-tax-burden-remains-near-historic-low-cooke-raised-325k-in-q4/
<br><b><i>Top headlines from the Health Care Report…</b></i>
— Wisconsin has enacted a new continuous health coverage policy for members of BadgerCare Plus and other Medicaid programs who are under age 19, state health officials announced.
<i>For more of the most relevant news on COVID-19, reports on groundbreaking health research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics.com and WisBusiness.com.</i>
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#TOP STORIES#
# Johnsonville to close Sheboygan County plant, affecting nearly 400 workers
# She needs Botox to treat multiple sclerosis, but her insurance denied coverage. Company now promises an ‘internal review.’
# Wisconsin health care costs at core of battle between business lobby WMC and hospital group WHA
#TOPICS#
# AGRIBUSINESS
– Wisconsin NRCS offers big opportunity for small-scale operations through the Conservation Stewardship Program
http://wisconsinagconnection.com/story-state.php?Id=11&yr=2024
# ECONOMY
– Wisconsin tax burden stays low even without tax cuts, report says
# EDUCATION
– Milwaukee Academy of Science to open new campus in fall 2024 in former Penfield Montessori building
# ENVIRONMENT
– Abnormally warm conditions cause fits for Wisconsin ice anglers, business owners
# HEALTH CARE
– SSM Health customers sent notice of possible data breach
# LABOR
– Johnsonville to close one facility by the end of 2024. Here’s how many workers could be impacted.
# MANAGEMENT
– Serial entrepreneur Jeremy Fojut, co-founder of NEWaukee, leaving organization
# MANUFACTURING
– Glendale-based Great Lakes Industrial acquires Ohio-based gasket manufacturer
– Johnsonville will shutter plant at its Sheboygan County campus after acquiring another Wisconsin sausage producer
# REAL ESTATE
– Three Madison projects in 2024 have long-term implications
– See the most expensive metro Milwaukee homes sold in 2023: Slideshow
# REGULATION
– Chickens could be kept in every Wisconsin community under new bill
– Kenosha City Council approves agreement allowing casino project to move forward
# RETAIL
– Multi-tenant retail development proposed in Kenosha
# TECHNOLOGY
– As data center cooling sales grow, Modine dives deeper into market with tech acquisition
# UTILITIES
– Superior’s mayor wants utility regulators to revisit their approval of a $700M gas plant
# PRESS RELEASES
<i>See these and other press releases:
https://www.wisbusiness.com/press-releases/ </i>
Blue West Capital: Arranges sale of a mixed-use redevelopment property in Milwaukee
