Farm Personal Property Taxes, 1957-62

Report Introduction: For many years the U.S. Department of Agriculture has published estimates of the aggregage amount of taxes levied on farm personal property. The first publication of these estimates, in the Agricultural Finance Review of May 1941, showed the annual estimates for 1924 through 1939. Estimates of farm personal property taxes have been published annually since 1941. These estimates have proved useful primarily in evaluating the net income position of farmers and of various types of farming enterprises. In addition, information about taxes levied on agricultural personalty is essential in evaluating questions of State and local tax policy. It is pertinent to questions of tax equity and of the economic effects of various methods of financing State and local governments. Up to the present time only the annual estimates of the total of all taxes levied on farm personal property in the United States have been published. This single annual total has been inadequate for many purposes. This report provides more detailed estimates by States and, where data permit, by components of the farmers' personal property tax base. It also describes the method used in estimating farm personal property taxes. The economic effects of these levies are not considered in this report but will be analyzed in a subsequent publication