Nat'l Agricultural Classification Survey..

posted by ET1 S













Posted by ET1 SS
He got back to me.

US Code, Title 7, paragraph 2204G. AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE TO CONDUCT CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE [written in 1997]

Quote:
(a) Census of agriculture required

(1) In general, In 1998 and every fifth year thereafter, the Secretary of Agriculture shall take a census of agriculture.

(d) Enforcement
(1) Fraud
A person over 18 years of age who willfully gives an answer that is false to a question, which is authorized by the Secretary to be submitted to the person in connection with a census under this section, shall be fined not more than $500.

(2) Refusal or neglect to answer questions
A person over 18 years of age who refuses or willfully neglects to answer a question, which is authorized by the Secretary to be submitted to the person in connection with a census under this section, shall be fined not more than $100.


The Farm bill of 1997 included this gem.

2012 is the year for a pre-screening survey, to focus the USDA on exactly who farmers are. In preparation for the real survey coming in 2013.

False answers can be fined not more than $500.

Refusing to answer of neglecting to answer a question can be fined not more than $100.

The law explains that you are required to answer any question they have except for your SSN and your religion.
_

How many have they fined the answer is no one.

__________________
God must have loved stupid people because he made so many of them.

On taxes, on Schedule F, you list your dollar numbers -income, expenses.

Most of that gets lumped into big groups of numbers.

So, they wouldn't know if you grew strawberries, or sweet corn, or soybeans, or hay, or field corn....

And if you do have it listed that way, they still wouldn't know if you grew an acre or 10 acres or 1000 acres of any one crop. And they wouldn't know if you had a good, or poor crop.

So......

They really don't know what you produce, from your tax records?

Perhaps you don't want them to know, and fine, whatever.

If you look at those 'Yearbooks of Agriculture' you can find some neat info. Probably not useful to you, but - kinda neat.

Some folks use that info to worry if we have enough food production. Some use the info to determine if there are enough black farmers. Or if there are enough female farmers. Some work through the data to figure out if farms are getting bigger, or getting smaller.

Maybe that info isn't important to you.

But - that's the kind of info they get out of it. Lot of folks like to know that general info - not about you specificly, they don't give a darn about you or me. But they want to know the state or county averages.

Not saying you should like that, don't care if you fill it out. Just saying, that's the sort of info they get from it all, and they don't have the data from your tax records that they get from the survey.

Probably the sad part about these reoccuring threads is that we no longer trust the govt. Says a lot about out society. I'm not too worried about the ag survey; but I do understand the creeping mistrust of our govt. It's just gotten so big and top heavy.

--->Paul

Rambler, I was thinking along the lines of livestock, not crops.

When done properly, each animal is accounted for, for tax purposes. Depreciation of breeders comes into play, as well as born vs purchased, sold vs freezered, etc.

So, maybe there aren't enough female farmers... um... what then? Another govt program to encourage more women to farm?
A bunch of senseless hooey, as far as I'm concerned. Production numbers can be useful, I agree, but gender or race of the farmer... not so much... EXCEPT to skew numbers resulting in more govt interference.

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Just got ours again too. IIRC, I ans a few meaningless ?s last time. We don't even live on our 20 ac.

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If we don't understand what it is for, let's make up stuff to either scare each other, fan the flames of paranoia or make the government look stupid.
Anyone that has bothered to find out what this survey really is, please stay away!

If I don't farm for profit, and my animals never leave the farm, then it's simply invasion of privacy.

Those who regularly rely on farm subsidies from the govt... yep, keep filling them out. You wouldn't want to ruin that slave/owner relationship.

__________________
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I don't care what they SAY it's for. I am Not paranoid, I am sick of the Gov. trying to manipulate themselves into my life. I have no trust in the Government and their reasoning or lack of. We are not even allowed to know just who is sitting in the WH. And yes, the Government looks incomptenet(stupid as you say) not to mention Criminal.

So very true. And even if it doesn't effect some, those surveys help others, so filling one out may not help the person filling it out right away, but those that are neighbors, or in the same county, monies gets spread out and among all sorts of folks, not just those that may or may not sell a animal or benefit directly but indirectly they are. And filling a little piece of paper out is not changing anybodies way of life either. But it just may help out your neighbor down the road. And in doing so you then also are getting some of its benefits.

The question is, what is the survey for?

I'm trying to answer the question. You are trying to make some political point for some reason, that does not answer the question????

Tax return doesn't provide very much info as I mentioned; and I think the USDA hates working with the IRS as much as you or I do! So, the USDA needs to collect it's own data. IRS isn't supposed to share - now even if we believe they share info to build thick case books against each & every one of us and have libraries of info on every one of us stored away, they couldn't show their hand by openly sharing this data, so of course even in your world they need to do their own survey to keep up appearences.

I'm trying to answer the question - what's it for?

Should we the gov be helping blacks, females, farmers markets, corn/soy farmers? That is a _different_ question that was not asked here.

So, I find your comments in this thread political, or self centered, or besides the point. Just in this thread, not making you out to be a bad person. But - you seem bent on providing your political bias here, when there really wasn't any questions about that stuff?

For what it's worth, I think the govt wastes a lot of money on a lot of junk. But - that wasn't the question.

The USDA used info from various surveys from around the globe, and came out with a report this morning, on what this coming world grain outlook should be. This report has put corn down 40 cents a bu, soybeans down 38 cents a bu, wheat down 41 cents a bu.

Does that help you out, make you feel better if the govt is bashing those darn farmers and the govt data is making cheap feed for you to buy again?

Did the govt do anything to reduce your paycheck by 5% today?

Those surveys don't do all that much to help us grain farmers either!

Sheez. The question was why the survey?

Try to answer the question.

--->Paul

I generally like to keep government far in the background of my life where they belong but I dont see much harm from the survey. We have to file personal property tax in MO and get taxed a small amount by the animal, we file schedule F, and a quick perusal of Google Earth shows a lot of detail on our place so I am not sure how "under the radar" anyone can be anymore. We even had a guy last year come by hawking an aerial photo of the place that showed the whole barnyard (and yes we bought one...figure in 10 years when they come round again it would be kind of interesting to compare).

People's feelings may be related to location and experience with local USDA or State operatives. In our entirely rural county the serving USDA office is staffed by locals and you can rent equipment from them at a cheap rate, their cost share program is well thought of and sought after and though I havent taken or applied for any direct financial assistance they have given me lots of advice with various issues or problems.

If Haypoint and others are correct that the survey in part helps allocate resources then I am all for it, if its to be used for nefarious purposes then I doubt filling out the survey or not will have much impact one way or another and I would think your more sky lighting yourself by not filling it out. I mean if your actually worried about it, would you rather be on the list composed of tens of millions or a smaller list composed of 10s of thousands or less? Either way your going on a list of some type.

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I'll ignore your two full posts of condescending remarks, and answer this question outright:

Future reference, in compliance with ICLEI and Agenda 21.

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I agree.

To build a larger government role in our lives, to increase spending, and bring us into compliance with Agenda 21.

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http://www.mofga.org/

http://www.mofga.org/Programs/FarmAp...2/Default.aspx

No, they are not.
All my taxes ask for is dollar amounts.
They don't care about animal details at all

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ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ

Ohhhhhh, I see. You are worried that filling out the annual Ag Survey is somehow connected to the New World Order and one great government, controlled by the crazy folks in the United Nations. Right?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agenda_21

Yeah, I see that happening.

BFF, you're wrong.

When I ran a cattle company, I kept a IRS-issued logbook where every farm expense was logged throughout the year. Every animal was accounted for. My Farm Ins. CPA knew every cow, her age (for depreciation purposes), whether she calved, WHEN she calved, and whether the offspring was a calf or heifer. Every animal that died. Every animal taken to auction, and what they sold for. Any fertilizer/seed, when, and how much was applied. Any NEW fence expenses versus any fence REPAIR expenses (they're different). I could go on and on.

I no longer do all that, as I'm out of the cattle business. I just raise goats, chickens, horses, and hay and file as if they're all pets because it's usually a wash (more likely a loss) every year anyway.

__________________
Before you marry someone, ask yourself, "Will they be a good killing partner during the zombie apocalypse?"
-someecards.com

It's obviously the first time hearing about Agenda 21. Why else would you quote Wiki?

'Nuff said.

__________________
Before you marry someone, ask yourself, "Will they be a good killing partner during the zombie apocalypse?"
-someecards.com

When you ran that cattle company, did they send in their Annual Ag Survey?

There was no "they"... it was MY cattle company.
I never received one in the years I was operating.
They're obviously much more interested now, about things, than ever before.

__________________
Before you marry someone, ask yourself, "Will they be a good killing partner during the zombie apocalypse?"
-someecards.com

Haypoint - I'm curious. You've made your point, you think it is a good gov't program or at least it is a gov't program that is going to happen anyway, so you believe it is foolish not to participate. Is that reasonably close to your position?

You seem to have gotten yourself quite worked up about people not agreeing with you. And since you believe it would be better for you if they ignore the survey, why all the agitation and put downs?

farm taxes are filled out using one of two methods...i used cash methods (cow/calf for breed stock and beef) at no time was the number of cattle on hand used in prep of taxes..

the results of the form in this thread (to my knowledge) is to form a report on farm trends and quantities. how much beef ison farms, how much grain,etc....perhaps it is no ones business, i feel some comfort that someone is keeping an eye on food (it is food you know) available to the people in the United States



do u fill out the population census when it is sent to u?