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Monday, August 8, 2022

11:30 AM – 5:30 PM MDT

Registration Open

12:30 PM – 1:55 PM MDT

AG2201. Opening Remarks | Washington DC Update

Paul Neiffer

- Principal | CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)

James Wiesemeyer

- Washington Policy Analyst | Pro Farmer/Farm Journal

Washington Policy analyst, Jim Wiesemeyer, has covered elections ever since the Carter/Reagan election in 1980 when he interviewed both candidates. Since that election, he looks at key topics that help predict votes for the White House, Senate, and House contests and what the outcomes will mean for the economy and ag policy issues including farm and food, trade, energy (climate change, biofuels), and taxes.


Learning Objectives:

  • Go over housekeeping
  • Introduce the conference

2:00 PM – 2:50 PM MDT

AG2202. Commodity Markets

Tanner Ehmke

- Lead Economist | CoBank ACB

An economic outlook covering inflation, interest rates, agricultural commodity markets, input costs, and the impacts on the agricultural economy.


Learning Objectives:

  • Identify agricultural commodity prices and the impact on the ag economy.
  • Recognize inflation, interest rates, and the impact on the U.S. and global economies.

2:50 PM – 3:10 PM MDT

Networking Break and Exhibits

3:10 PM – 4:00 PM MDT

AG2203. Agriculture Labor Marketplace Update

Ryan Jacobsen

- CEO | Fresno County Farm Bureau

A reliable, stable and legal workforce is essential to America’s specialty crop producers. This rings especially true for California agriculture, which accounts for a third of the nation’s vegetables and two-thirds of its fruits and nuts, as well as a diversity of other foods. This agricultural labor update will delve into the increasing pressures and costs farmers and ranchers are facing related to finding skilled and available employees.


Learning Objectives:

  • Identify potential solutions for the perpetual agricultural labor shortages.
  • Recognize the challenges of California agriculture’s labor shortages and what that means to the rest of the nation.
  • Distinguish ways to intellectually discuss the labor marketplace with clients.

4:10 PM – 5:25 PM MDT

AG2204. Vertical Integration in the Livestock Industry

Mike Thoren

- President & CEO | Five Rivers Cattle Feeding

Overview of US Beef Industry. Focus on feedlots and pertinent accounting practices.


Learning Objectives:

  • Analyze the US Beef Industry
  • Analyze feedlots
  • Recognize accounting practices

5:30 PM – 6:30 PM MDT

Networking Reception

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

6:30 AM – 6:00 PM MDT

Registration Open

7:30 AM – 8:30 AM MDT

Continental Breakfast and Exhibits

8:30 AM – 9:55 AM MDT

AG2205. Opening Remarks | Tax Planning

Paul Neiffer

- Principal | CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)

Christopher Hesse

- Principal | CLA

This tax planning session is a potpourri of tax planning topics of prevalent issues within the tax community important for ag producers and landowners. The selected topics include issues that have been discussed within the agricultural tax community for decades as well as recent developments arising out of the TCJA and pandemic legislation.


Learning Objectives:

  • Distinguish real property from personal property for Section 1031 purposes, specifically addressing Section 1245 real property
  • Identify opportunities for reduction of self-employment tax while not increasing net investment income tax exposure
  • Recognize opportunities and limitations regarding allocations of nutrient values in agricultural land purchases
  • Analyze the speaker's view of distinctions between trade or business activities and activities engaged in for profit for QBI purposes

10:00 AM – 10:50 AM MDT

AG2206. Statements: What Financial Institutions are Looking For

Curt Covington

- Senior Director - Institution Credit | AgAmerica Lending

Lenders rely on financial reporting from their clients to obtain critical information about  a businesses' financial solvency and the various business and industry risks they face. So it stands to reason, the most important benefit of good financial reporting to a lender is access to high quality financial information. Furthermore, the average lender does not have ongoing inside access to the day-to-day operations of a company. Instead, they rely on financial reporting to provide accurate and readily comparable information. 

This session will explore what lenders are looking for when they "ask for the moon" and why they want it.



Learning Objectives:

  • Distinguish what a lender "wants" versus what a lender "needs" to make a sound credit decision.
  • Identify the biggest mistakes businesses make in dealing with their lender in terms of their financial reporting process.
  • Analyze what businesses can expect from their lender's financial reporting requirements

10:50 AM – 11:10 AM MDT

Networking Break and Exhibits

11:10 AM – 12:25 PM MDT

AG2207. Financial Institution Panel

Brock Thorberg

- Regional Coverage Manager, Agribusiness Banking | Bank of the West

Van Dewey

- EVP, General Manager West Territory | Rabo AgriFinance

Curt Covington

- Senior Director - Institution Credit | AgAmerica Lending

Hear it live from three of the best and most respected lenders in the market. The panel will discuss various topics including what it means to keep the three masters they serve, the borrower, the bank and the regulators, happy! Borrowers want their money NOW and often times struggle with why lenders are either appear to be slow to respond to their loan request or keep asking for more information. The bank, on the other hand, is built on a risk reward model where the higher the borrower's business and information risk, the higher the expected return on the money they lend. Regulators expect lenders to be singularly focused on risk identification and mitigation in their loan portfolio.

This session is intended to be interactive as well. So come with your questions!


Learning Objectives:

  • Identify what lenders are seeing and hearing in the market.
  • Distinguish trends in the future of banking

12:25 PM – 1:30 PM MDT

Lunch

1:40 PM – 2:30 PM MDT

AG2208. Lease Accounting A&A Update

James Grossman

- Principal | CliftonLarsonAllen LLP

New Lease Accounting - It's Here, Are You Ready?

The new lease standard, Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) ASC 842, is effective for private companies with fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2021. Begin today to evaluate the technical accounting challenges and resources needed for implementation.

    • The new standard brings leases onto the balance sheet to enable users to assess the amount, timing, and uncertainty of cash flows.
    • Not all leases under ASC 842 will be called a lease. Reviewing leases can be time-consuming and require significant accounting knowledge and judgment.
    • The entity should report right-of-use assets and obligations based on legal enforceability of the contract term.

Learning Objectives:

  • Identify helpful tips on implementation
  • Recognize the changes associated with the new lease standard

1:40 PM – 2:30 PM MDT

AG2209. Entity Selection Pros and Cons + Farm Service Agency

Paul Neiffer

- Principal | CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)

Roger McEowen

- Kansas Farm Bureau Professor of Agricultural Law and Taxation | Washburn University School of Law

This session will review the various options available to farmers on entity selection and will review how FSA payment limitations may or may not limit the entity selected.


Learning Objectives:

  • Identify how each entity selection can affect the overall tax plan for a farmer
  • Indicate how FSA payment limitations may be affected by the entity selected

2:40 PM – 3:30 PM MDT

AG2210. Update from the Farm Financial Standards Council

Jeffrey Bushey

- Managing Principal | Nietzke & Faupel, P.C.

An overview of the latest work done by the Farm Financial Standards Council (FFSC).   The topics covered include: 

  • Deferred taxes, how to calculate them along with a discussion on depreciation approaches.   As well as how deferred taxes impact the value of farm assets including farmland and how this effects buy sell agreements and estate planning. 
  • 13 new financial ratios.   After more than three years of in-depth analysis and discussions the recommended financial measures has been reduced from 21 to 13.  
  • Financial Guidelines for Agriculture: An Implementation Guide for Non-Accountants.  This 23 page document has been updated for consistency with the Financial Guidelines.  Tables and other graphics have been improved to give it a more modern look.

Learning Objectives:

  • Identify the 13 financial measurements recommended by the Farm Financial Standards Council
  • Indicate how deferred taxes on farmland impact the balance sheet
  • Recognize the changes to the Financial Guidelines for Agriculture Implementation Guide

2:40 PM – 3:30 PM MDT

AG2211. Advanced Estate Trust Planning

Paul Neiffer

- Principal | CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)

This session will review the current estate tax planning issues and opportunities.  It will also review some of the more advanced trust options available to higher net worth farmers.


Learning Objectives:

  • Identify the current estate tax planning issues and opportunities
  • Recognize some of the more advanced trust options available to higher net worth farmers.

3:30 PM – 3:50 PM MDT

Networking Break and Exhibits

3:45 PM – 5:00 PM MDT

AG2212. What the Formula Language Means and What Should You be Looking For

Steve Troyer

- Tax Partner | Eide Bailly LLP

Roger McEowen

- Kansas Farm Bureau Professor of Agricultural Law and Taxation | Washburn University School of Law

How to navigate the meaning of legal documents


Learning Objectives:

  • Distinguish the meaning of legal documents
  • Analzye documents to improve clients' ability to review

5:10 PM – 6:00 PM MDT

AG2213. Hemp, Cannabis, and Farming Update

Shawn Hauser

- Partner | Vicente Sederberg LLP

This session will summarize the state and federal legal and policy landscape for hemp and cannabis and will dive into the details of proposed federal cannabis regulatory frameworks and their impact on hemp on cannabis. The session will highlight the primary regulatory and policy issues for cannabis and hemp, what’s coming in 2022 legislatively and on the ballot, and unpack the various approaches to cannabis legalization. The session will provide an update on the current legal landscape for cannabis, what’s coming in 2022, and the roles of states and federal regulatory agencies.


Learning Objectives:

  • Understand the federal cannabis legalization frameworks
  • Learn about the upcoming 2022 state cannabis legalization initiatives
  • Learn about potential legislative and policy changes for hemp
  • Learn the nuances of various potential cannabis regulatory structures and the roles of federal regulatory agencies

Wednesday, August 10, 2022

6:30 AM – 12:30 PM MDT

Registration Open

7:30 AM – 8:30 AM MDT

Continental Breakfast and Exhibits

8:30 AM – 9:55 AM MDT

AG2214. Opening Remarks | Humanizing the Farm Transition Process

Paul Neiffer

- Principal | CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)

Dave Specht

- Director- Global Family Business Institute | Drucker School of Management

This session will focus on the unique ways that CPAs can influence the humanization of the farm transition.  You will learn how to redefine the client relationship from serving the founder to serving the family unit.  Attendees will also learn to look at the farm transition through the lens of 3 systems that are responsible for the complexity of these transitions.  You will also come away with crucial questions that must be confronted to not only perpetuate the farm, but also preserve the family relationships.  


Learning Objectives:

  • Identify ways to improve the approach to generational transition planning
  • Recognize unique ways that CPAs can influence the humanization of the farm transition.

10:00 AM – 11:15 AM MDT

AG2215. Carbon Credit Trends

William Northey

- Principal | WHNorthey LLC

Business sustainability announcements are made nearly every day.  What may that mean for supply chains and eventually balance sheets?  We will focus on a view from the food and agriculture supply chain and carbon credit markets from crop and livestock activities.


Learning Objectives:

  • Analyze the language of sustainability
  • Identify policy changes regarding carbon markets and sustainability

11:15 AM – 11:45 AM MDT

Networkng Break and Exhibits

11:45 AM – 12:35 PM MDT

AG2216. Fireside Chat

Steve Troyer

- Tax Partner | Eide Bailly LLP

Paul Neiffer

- Principal | CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)

Roger McEowen

- Kansas Farm Bureau Professor of Agricultural Law and Taxation | Washburn University School of Law

Jeffrey Bushey

- Managing Principal | Nietzke & Faupel, P.C.

This session will recap the conference and take questions from the audience that have not already been answered


Learning Objectives:

  • Recognize issues facing the industry
  • Identify answers to audience questions related to the agriculture industry