OKAWVILLE – Between a farmer and a disabled veteran, who's more deserving of taxpayer subsidies may become the question GOP voters in the 108th House District decide in the March 20th primary.
Incumbent state Rep. Charlie Meier (R-Okawville) – who farms corn, soybean and wheat when he's not at the Capitol received more than $700,000 in federal farm subsidies between 1995 and 2016, an average of about $31,858 a year, the Belleville News Democrat reports.
Meier's challenger in next month's primary is Madison County Board member Donald Moore, 60, of Troy, who retired from the Marines in 2000. Illinois allows veterans disabled over 70% an annual property tax exemption. For Moore that means he doesn't have to pay about $8000 a year in property taxes.
They just may cancel each other out in the 108th GOP nominee race.
More in the Belleville News Democrat.
Distraction
Congress should eliminate farm subsidies. That spending disobeys the 10th Amendment.
The days of “forty acres and a mule,” the days of the small family farm, are about finished.
Corporate farms have bought or leased much of the land, and the need for most of these subsidies is finished.
I live in rural Illinois, and have seen the change. If someone has a small farm, it is usually used as a SECONDARY source of income to a regular job, or to a business located elsewhere.
I agree with Phil Collins.
I hope everyone follows the Constitution in its original intent.
The Supreme Court has already ruled farm subsidies are constitutional. It’s pretty clearly Commerce Clause activity.
I just think the framing here is interesting. It’s about who *deserves* subsidies more, like government activity is a reward for being virtuous or something.
Interesting the lack of comments on the tax exemption on personal property.
I know many farmers who are sick and tired of high property taxes. Everything gets dumped on their land. Not just schools but fire districts, nursing homes, library and hospital districts and the list goes on and on and on and on. And its not just the house they live in which is understandable but their entire land. Its a cash cow for people who want someone else to pay for all of these services and the farmers who are few in number always will get ‘outvoted.’
So readers, how about that for a different perspective?
Get rid os farm subsidies. Sure. But get rid of a lot of other business subsidies that exist all over the place and stop taxing the H E L L out of farm land.
Supreme Court? Ever hear of Dred Scott?
Sarcasm (cough)
You’re wrong Frank!
Illinois farmland is taxed on its productivity, not its
market value. Examples in Southern Illinois are about
$10-15 per acre for farmland renting for $250-300 per acre.
Additionally, farm buildings are taxed at 1/6th of value where my commercial buildings get no reduction.
The tax on farmland that you complain about still goes to the local taxing entities like the (failing) public school systems.
Also, the Federal Crop Insurance program is 60% funded
by the taxpayers and according to EWG costing about 8
BILLION dollars per year. So really the only ‘cheap’ food is GMO-glyphosate laced poison, help yourself!
The mighty ‘retired’ Representative Ron Stephens
(R) Greenville authored part Veterans real estate tax
break. Check with Bond County for Ron’s assessed value
and his real estate tax bill!
Further, if Mr. Moore is 90% disabled, how can he fully
serve the taxpayers? It looks like a pretty good gig to be an IL State Representive (part time)! I have seen ‘Disabled’ Veterans that get a military pension take full time positions that someone who was not a Veteran,receives NO BENEFITS and deserved the position but lost out because the person hired was a VETERAN!
I want the U.S. to have a strong national defense but
tell me Frank, why is there continuous war?
Let’s just all get on the gubbermint train because as
history has proven, one a nation starts down the socialist path, there is no turning back!
Sam,
You ignore the reality of high property taxes on farms and that all types of taxes are dumped on that land that have no business being there in the first place.
Many us would be more than happy to dump government subsidies to actually reduce our property taxes. And right now the only government subsidy is Crop insurance and I will get into that later.
Of course you don’t care since you don’t pay them. There is no justification that a farm should have to pay all of those taxes on nursing homes, fire districts, Hospital districts etc. If you think so you are a part of the real problem.
As to your comments about the crop insurance you are absolutely correct! Although only those with poorer land, susceptible to flooding or borrow from banks take it because if you do not fall into one of those categories it is still a bad deal for the farmer. I know what I am talking about.
As to the continuous wars. Again I agree with you.
As to the growing power of government and its ability to control and even destroy by taxation, again there is a lot of truth to your point.
However, that is a separate issue in contrasting these two people and the the role of taxation and redistribution in government in government.
I gave a different view that needed to be stated. And I stand by it.
I pay taxes on farmland. They are pennies on the dollar compared with the commercial land tax bill.
I stand by my comments.
How much taxes?
I stand by what I said.