Death can happen to anyone at any age, but with enough planning and the right help, farmers can sleep better at night knowing their legacy will live on and continue to bear fruit.

For 90% of farmers in Skagit County (where 42% of producers are over the age of 65), the future and who to seek help from to plan it remain unclear. To the experts who gathered at Shawn O’Donnell’s Irish Pub on Jan. 14, the time to figure those out is now.

Farmer Dave Hedlin works the family fields adjacent to the town of La Conner. Photo by Nancy K. Crowell / La Conner Community News

The workshop was part of a three-part series on farm succession planning that has drawn farmers from Skagit and other neighboring counties. According to Sarah Stoner, agricultural lands coordinator for the county’s Farmland Legacy Program, the program was awarded a four-year grant “to support the transfer of agricultural lands to the next generation of farmers,” with the workshops being a part of this effort.

The panelists and a guide that was handed out to guests identified several steps farmers should know before venturing into the process.

First, according to Agricultural Mediator Jack Hebner, is deciding when to get started and which family members to involve. At Fulcrum Dispute Resolution Center, Hebner and his colleague Gayle Cooper are tasked with assisting clients develop the plan, facilitating conversations and ensuring clients stay on track to speed up what would otherwise be a very long process, Cooper explained.

As said by Trevor Faucett, relationship manager at AgWest Farm Credit, the earlier the process starts, the more successful the outcome.

To Attorney Dylan LeValley, having a vision from the get-go is key.

The next step is determining what objectives to pursue. These might look like keeping the business in the family, reducing legal fees and taxes, ensuring the surviving spouse gets adequate income, or treating heirs equitably. This last objective would apply to situations where, for example, a child was directly involved with the business while the others were not. It would be unfair for the heirs to inherit the same share with such different contributions, the guide states.

Some goals, the guide warns, may conflict with others. For example, minimizing legal fees and probate costs may result in higher federal and state death taxes.

Next is determining what property is included in the estate. According to the guide, if property has value and is owned or controlled by a person when they die, the property will be included in that person’s estate to calculate taxes.

Then it’s time to learn what assistance (like lawyers), tax laws and forms of ownership — such as community property, sole ownership, life estate, tenancy-in-common and joint tenancy with right of survivorship — are available.

The final step, according to Hebner, is deciding when to pass control once and for all.

Todd Burgers, certified public accountant at Larson Gross Advisors, emphasized the importance of assessing whether the farm has been and can continue to be profitable to ensure it’s a business the next generation would want to be a part of.

Burgers discussed some of the recent tax changes that farmers should be aware of.

“The One Big Beautiful Bill,” which was passed last summer, addresses succession planning concerns by increasing the estate and gift tax exemption to $15 million per individual or $30 million per couple, a change that went into effect Jan. 1. The state legislature also passed a large tax bill last year, increasing an estate’s exemption amount from $2.193 million to $3 million, while also increasing tax rates on estates that exceed that.

At 35%, Washington has the highest estate tax rate in the country, according to Burgers and taxfoundation.org. The state Department of Revenue states that it is possible to “deduct the value of farms and timberlands from the taxable value of an estate as long as certain requirements are met. This deduction applies to the land, farm structures and farming equipment. It is an unlimited deduction.”

Following a question on water adjudication from a Whatcom farmer, LeValley said it’s important that property owners identify their water rights and gather evidence to support their claim. Without that evidence, the right might be lost once the farm transfer happens.

“The state clearly has the intention of adjudicating everyone’s water rights in the state eventually,” he said.

Farmers, ranchers and farmland owners who want to transition their land may be eligible for grants of up to $10,000 to cover the costs of professional services helping with the transfer, or to purchase or improve infrastructure and equipment needed for the transition. To qualify, applicants must be actively working with a “land transfer navigator,” a person who helps them through the planning process, for free, according to a flyer provided at the workshop. For more information about the grant, visit farmland.org/land-transfer-navigators/

Luisa Loi is a general assignment reporter for La Conner Community News.