November 14, 2012
www.gfb.org
Vol. 30 No. 46
SIGNUP FOR AG SALES TAX EXEMPTION CARDS UNDERWAY Beginning Nov. 15, the Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) is accepting applications for the Georgia Agriculture Tax Exemption (GATE) certificate, which Georgia farmers must have to receive sales tax exemptions on farm input materials effective Jan. 1, 2013. Applications may be completed online at http://www.agr.georgia.gov or downloaded and mailed to the GDA. Call 1-855-327-6829 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. or visit the website for information on applying for GATE. There is a $20 fee to process applications online that may be paid with Visa or MasterCard and a $25 fee for mailed applications that may be paid with a personal check made payable to the Georgia Department of Agriculture. Printed applications for mailing will be available at most county Farm Bureau offices. Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Gary Black, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom McCall and Georgia Farm Bureau (GFB) President Zippy Duvall launched the signup for the GATE certificate during a press conference held Nov. 14 at the GFB home office in Macon. “I encourage farmers to apply for the GATE certificate immediately so they can receive the tax exemptions when they go into effect the first of the year,” Duvall said. “Georgia Farm Bureau worked hard to educate our state officials about the importance of having these sales tax exemptions as the GATE program will help Georgia farmers remain competitive.” GATE, established by HB 386, offers qualified ag producers a sales tax exemption on ag equipment and most materials used to produce ag products. The GATE certificate replaces the Agricultural Certificate of Exemption (ST-A1) form producers currently use to receive existing sales tax exemptions. “The legislators for a long time wanted to have a more consolidated tax policy for the state,” Black said. “HB 386 updates and modernizes our tax codes allowing the agribusiness community to become more competitive with our surrounding states.” To qualify for a GATE certificate an applicant must meet one of the following qualifications: 1) produce a minimum of $2,500 of ag products annually 2) provide a minimum of $2,500 worth of agricultural services annually 3) maintain orchards, pasture or timber with the long-term potential to produce $2,500 annually or 4) own property that qualifies for the Conservation Use Value Assessment or Forestland Protection Act. GFB began work on the sales tax exemption issue in 2010 after the Georgia General Assembly created the Special Council for Tax Reform and Fairness to study Georgia’s tax structure and suggest changes. In 2011, the council recommended that farmers keep their existing sales tax exemptions and that the exemptions be expanded to include energy, equipment parts, fence products and more.