A set of agriculture bills to clarify ag exemptions were passed in the Michigan House before summer recess. Majority floor leader Dan Lauwers told Brownfield Ag News that one of the bills builds upon changes requested by the Department of Treasury to specify exemptions to agricultural land tile, subsurface irrigation pipe, portable grain bins and grain drying equipment, even when they are a permanently fixed part of real estate. “If the foundation is not movable, you pay taxes on that, but the structure itself that can be disassembled, moved and reassembled—that is exempt from sales and use tax,” Lauwers said. Other bills include eliminating sunset language on the Agricultural Disaster Loan Origination Program to help fruit growers impacted by freeze events and a measure that give farmers the ability to move portable toilets, in addition to a service provider, as required in some farm fields under food safety standard.
