The Federal Government announced the designated and buffer areas for the 2025 Livestock Tax Deferral Program this week.
The Livestock Tax Deferral provision allows livestock producers in prescribed areas, who are forced to sell all or part of their breeding herd due to drought, excess moisture or flooding, to defer a portion of their income from sales until the following tax year.
In Manitoba, parts of the northwest, northeast, and northern part of the province are included; Saskatchewan's deferral areas include parts of southwest and northern Saskatchewan; and in Alberta, it covers areas from the south to the Peace River region, excluding east-central Alberta.
The Vice President of the Canadian Cattle Association, Ryan Beirebach, says the more areas that are covered under the program, the better.
"It's good that it was declared early this time. Sometimes they wait till the end of the year, and producers have already made their decision to either buy, feed, or sell cattle, and it's been influenced by their tax situation. Having this announced early allows them to have all the information to make that decision. "
The Canadian Cattle Association has been asking the federal government to make changes to the program that would allow producers to decide when they want to do a deferral rather than have to wait for the announcement and then hope that their area is included.
"We end up with years like this where there's certain areas that are really dry and it's really hard for producers to sell their breeding herd down to kind of match their feed supply. Then to have to pay tax on that money and buy those cattle back once they do have moisture. So, having the tax deferral allows them to keep all of that money to be able to restock when they do get to where it's not in a feed shortage situation. "
He says the biggest concern for many producers is they've already been short of grass throughout the grazing season, and then with the lower feed supplies, it's really putting pressure on them.
"Everybody likes the prices of cattle right now, which, if you do have to reduce your herd, it's nice to be able to do it when the prices are high. But then, they destocked in the past few years, and now when prices are good, they have less cattle to sell. "
Under the program, in order to qualify, the breeding herd must have been reduced by at least 15% in the specified areas.
Bierebach was pleased to see the buffer zones alongside the designated areas included in the program so that some of the people that fall just outside that direct region could participate.
He expects we may see more areas being added. According to the program, an area's eligibility is determined if forage shortfalls of 50 per cent or more occur due to drought, excess moisture, or flooding.
Bierebach encourages producers to take a look at the areas covered in the 2025 Livestock Tax Deferral program. If they feel the area they are in should be included, then it's important to reach out to their MLA, MP, provincial Cattle Association, or the Canadian Cattle Association to see if the designated area could be expanded.
"The sooner we hear that, the sooner we can work with the Federal Government to adjust the (program) lines."