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Heidi Gant     

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hgant@infb.org

(Indianapolis) – Oct. 8, 2026 – Indiana Farm Bureau has announced its issue priorities for the 2027 legislative session which include essential budget requests for agriculture, continued tax reform and policies that strengthen our food system.

The priorities identified by INFB for 2027 include the following general topics:

Prioritize agriculture and rural investment.

Over the summer, the Indiana Agricultural and Promotion Task Force highlighted the need to strengthen investments in the Indiana State Department of Agriculture and the Board of Animal Health to ensure critical programs and services supporting Indiana agriculture remain viable. Adequate funding is needed to retain and recruit staff, including meat inspectors and veterinarians, while supporting initiatives such as Indiana Grown that expand market opportunities for Indiana farmers.

The Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory is also a funding priority. As animal health and disease threats continue to emerge, maintaining a strong diagnostic and surveillance system is essential to protecting animal health, safeguarding Indiana's livestock industry and ensuring rapid response capabilities when disease outbreaks occur. Strategic investments in these organizations will help support the long-term growth and competitiveness of Indiana agriculture.

INFB will also support policies that invest in rural communities and help create opportunities for passing the farm onto the next generation. Those requests will include more funding for rural healthcare access, transportation infrastructure and childcare expansion.

“After several years of economic hardship in the ag economy, most seasoned farmers have reserves that can help them weather those storms,” said Randy Kron, INFB president. “I worry about the younger generation of farmers who haven’t had time to establish themselves yet. That’s why we’re pushing to fund programs that assist new farmers and strengthen pathways for passing the farm to future generations.”

Continue Indiana’s property tax and assessment reform.

“The tax relief that came out of Senate Enrolled Act 1 from the 2025 legislative session was a great start to alleviate some of the economic pressures landowners were facing, but we need to finish the job,” said Katie Nelson, INFB’s executive director of public policy. “With continued hits coming from high input costs, land prices and property taxes, farmers will be lucky to break even this year. We need lasting property tax reform now.”

INFB will be asking the legislature to reduce the assessed value for agricultural-use buildings by moving them from the 3% to the 2% tax cap, which would also provide those properties with a one-third deduction. They will also work to push legislation that would exempt the first $2 million in business personal property tax for all filers instead of the current exemption which only provides relief to those under the $2 million purchase cost.

Priority will be given to policies that strengthen oversight of the property tax assessment process overall to ensure accurate, consistent and transparent assessment practices statewide.

Support Indiana’s food system.

In the midst of the Make America Healthy Again movement, INFB hopes to champion state and federal incentive programs that make locally grown, nutrient-dense foods more accessible in schools and rural communities and ensure access to those foods by advocating for science-based policies, avoiding a state-by-state patchwork of regulations.​

INFB will also prioritize expanded market opportunities for farmers and reduced regulatory barriers that limit food production and sales.

“With this coming year being a longer budget session, it’s important that we prioritize the areas that really impact our members since we know they won’t be easy asks,” said Kron. “This year, we need the General Assembly to consider legislation that will protect and enhance the future for farms and rural communities to ultimately ensure safe, affordable food not just for Hoosiers but for people all over the world.”

INFB’s policy priorities are created from the ground up, beginning with each county Farm Bureau. All 92 county organizations have the opportunity to make policy suggestions for the upcoming year. Then the recommendations are brought before a resolutions committee to be considered before they reach the INFB delegate session, which was held on Aug. 22 and consisted of 236 member representatives. After the delegate session, the INFB board of directors identified the key issues INFB members and staff will focus on at the Statehouse.

INFB leaders and staff will meet with legislators to discuss the organization’s policy priorities for the upcoming 2027 legislative session at their annual Organization Day Breakfast held at the Statehouse on Tuesday, Nov. 17. When the 2027 session of the Indiana General Assembly begins in January, INFB members will also visit with their legislators to advocate for this year’s policy positions.

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About Indiana Farm Bureau: For more than 100 years, Indiana Farm Bureau (INFB) has protected and enhanced the future of agriculture and our communities. As the state’s largest general farm organization, INFB works diligently to cultivate a thriving agricultural ecosystem to strengthen the viability of Indiana agriculture. Learn more at INFB.org.

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