State Rep. Dan Swanson is a 6th-generation family farmer near Alpha, Illinois. His family raises various crops and livestock. Swanson says Illinois must do more to preserve agriculture for the future. Swanson has sponsored HB 1501, legislation that creates an income tax credit for the owner of an agricultural asset who sells or rents that asset to a beginning farmer.
"There are young people in Illinois right now who want to get started in farming, but don't always have the opportunity," Swanson said. "We need to get that next generation up and running in agriculture. Unfortunately, my bill wasn't called before the required deadline. We need to get serious about preserving the future of agriculture in Illinois."
State Rep. Jason R. Bunting operates a family farm in Emington in rural Livingston County. Rep. Bunting noted the very real and dangerous conditions that farmers encounter in several aspects of their work. Rep. Bunting is sponsoring House Resolution 29, which would designate the week of September 15-21, 2025, as Farm Safety Week. Bunting also noted two other bills that would emulate Scott's Law, which requires drivers to move over and slow down for stopped emergency vehicles. Bunting's HB 3204 and HB 3205 would make Scott's Law provisions applicable to farm implements.
"My bill would require drivers to make room for farm equipment on the roads so they can safely pass the equipment," Bunting said. "This legislation would make the road safer for farmers, and for every other Illinoisan who drives the rural roads of this state, so that we can all make it home safely to our families."
State Rep. Wayne Rosenthal is the former Director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and a 4th-generation family farmer. Rosenthal argued for the Illinois estate tax exemption to be raised to help save family farms from double taxation.
"I know first-hand what this unfair estate tax means to my family and to every other family farm in Illinois," Rosenthal said. "This isn't just a tax, it's a threat to our way of life. Too often, I have heard from families, friends, and neighbors who have been hit hard by this unfair tax. Illinois estate taxes are levied on farm owners when they pass on. Unlike monetary assets that can be moved, land cannot, so our family farms are penalized. Illinois has not adjusted the estate tax on farmland in more than a decade. Inflation has risen, and we haven't made the necessary changes to our estate tax. We still have time to fix this problem this Session, we need to get to work so we can save Illinois family farms."