By Dori Modney (@Dori_Modney on Twitter)

Federal Budget to terminate farm Cash Ticket Deferral program

Apr 24, 2017 | 4:11 PM

AIRDRIE –   There was a harsh surprise for farmers in the March federal budget and the Western Barley Growers Association (WBGA) wants its members to speak out.
 
The Federal government intends to shut down the Cash Ticket Deferral (CTD) program, which has been used for over 40-years.  It allows farmers to manage their income between tax years and helps even out the uncontrollable boom and bust cycles of agriculture, which creates varied income from year to year.
 
While farmers have successfully used the CTD as a risk management tool, the Federal government contends there’s no clear rationale for maintaining the tax deferral, since participation in the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) is now voluntary.
 
However, growers maintain the tax deferral has nothing to do with the CWB and is still a crucial part of helping a farmer with cash flow.
 
A news release states, “The Advance Payments Program (APP) was developed for farmers to deal with the uncertainty of delivery and marketing opportunities of the old CWB, not the Cash Ticket Deferral program!   The APP still exists and is a tool farmers rely on to manage cash flow as they wait for the opportunity to deliver grain. The Cash Ticket Deferral is being used by 80% of farmers which indicates a clear rationale for maintaining the program!”
 
Doug Robertson, President of the Western Barley Growers Association, says farmers can’t grasp what the government was thinking when they developed the budget.
 
“We must conclude they have no idea what the program does for farmers and are looking for an easy cash grab this year.”
 
According to Robertson, it’s critical that farmers’ voices be heard on the issue and the WBGA wants farmers to let Associations and Commissions know how valuable this program is to them.
 
“We would strongly urge all farmers to let the Government know loud and clear why this program should not be terminated.”

It’s important that farmers get the word out as soon as possible because the Government set up a public consultation portal, which is only open until May 24, for comment on the decision to terminate the Program.   It can be accessed at consultation_tax_2017@canada.ca.

Doug Robertson can be contacted at dougarob@gmail.com