Finally, the agricultural industry will be treated with fairness. Out of all the tax cuts proposed last year, SB 1974, the Monteith Tax Equity Bill made it into one of the budget trailer bills. The measure will give back to hard working farmers approximately $11 million dollars annually. This is a huge victory for our agricultural industry. SB 1974 corrects the problem in current law that requires the collection of sales tax on non-annual plants for food for human consumption. It also conforms with the existing law by extending the sales tax exemption for seeds and annual plants to include perennial plants.

Thanks to Senator Dick Monteith and Vice-Chair of the Board of Equalization Dean Andal, the farmers of the State of California have now achieved a level of fairness in the tax code. As the main sponsor of this legislation, Duarte Nursery, would like to extend our gratitude to all the growers and all the agricultural organizations that supported this much needed tax reform. Duarte Nursery is proud to be a part of the Monteith pro-agriculture team and we are pleased with the success of the Monteith Tax Equity Bill.