ISSUES FACING STATE FARM BUREAU VARIED

Gift and estate taxes, private property rights, a school foundation formula and sales tax exemptions are all important issues to Missouri Farm Bureau members, according to the leader of that group.

"We're busy keeping tabs on both state and national levels on key issues which are of importance to our members," said Charles E. Kruse, new president of the Missouri Farm Bureau.

Kruse and Terry Buker, director of public relations and information for the Farm Bureau, were in Cape Girardeau Thursday.

"This is stop number eight on a statewide tour," said Buker. "We will complete our tour Monday in Springfield."

Since being elected president of the organization during the 78th annual meeting of the Missouri Farm Bureau at Osage Beach in December, Kruse has attended a regional American Farm Bureau meeting at Chicago, Ill., and the American Farm Bureau convention in Anaheim, Calif.

"Farmer and rancher delegates to the recent California meeting presented a solid front on key issues affecting agricultural issues," said Kruse. "The environment, wetlands, and private property rights are all big concerns for farmers."

Kruse feels that the key issue facing agriculture now is a proposed change to the estate tax.

"It's critical that we maintain current exemption levels to the estate tax law if we are to preserve the family farm," said Kruse Thursday. "It is in the best interest of farmers and consumers alike that our family farms are passed on to future generations."

This could be a problem if a bill to reduce the current gift and estate tax exemption passes Congress, noted Kruse.

"The current exemptions are $600,000," he explained. "A bill in 1992 (H.R. 4848) failed. That bill would have lowered the exemption to $200,000. You can be sure that another such bill will surface again this year."

Kruse said a capital gains tax was also being discussed in connection with gifts and real estate, which further complicates family farm inheritances.

Another topic of interest with farmers is the North American Free Trade Agreement.

"We have had a couple of great crop years in Missouri," said Kruse. "But, because of high production, prices have dropped, especially on grain. We need to find more markets for our farm products."

Kruse said the bureau is working in Missouri to pass the Private Property Right Act, to ensure legislators and regulators consider the impact rules and regulations have on landowners.

"The Katy Trail is a good example," said Kruse. "Many people have asked why the Farm Bureau is against the Katy Trail. We are not opposed to the Katy Trail, we're opposed to the way the state obtained the land for the trail.

"Land was taken from many owners without compensation," added Kruse. "This may not have happened if the state had to conduct an impact study on landowners."

Kruse said the Farm Bureau would also work to seek a school foundation formula that treats rural schools and school children equitably with those in metropolitan areas.

"The bureau will also work to keep the sales tax exemptions for farm machinery," said Kruse. "Every state that borders Missouri has this exemption. A tax on farm equipment would hurt farmers and farm equipment dealers."

Kruse, the bureau's 13th president, is a native of Stoddard County and has an agricultural background

He is a past Missouri Department of Agriculture director, and the family owns and operates a row crop farm at Dexter.

Kruse has also worked for BASF, a major farm chemical company, from 1975 to 1985, and has worked as a research agronomist at the University of Missouri Delta Center in Portageville.

He was appointed by Gov. John Ashcroft as Missouri Director of Agriculture in 1985, where he served until 1991, when he resigned to become executive vice president/CEO of the North American Equipment Dealers Association. He resigned from that position in August 1992 to run for Farm Bureau president.

Kruse is a member of the President's Council in Rural America. He is also a member of various Missouri soybean, corn and cotton commodity groups.

He and his wife, Pamela, are parents of two sons.