The 1980s have been a period of dramatic change for the income tax code in the United States. Although numerous modifications were considered in policy deliberations, two key goals, the reduction of the importance of tax considerations in investment decisions and tax simplification, emerged from the discussion and guided drafting of the 1986 Tax Reform Act. This study examines the importance of tax considerations in investment decisions under the provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 and its predecessor, the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982. The study then compares the tax liability under these tax codes with a nondistortionary tax scheme. Results indicate that the Tax Reform Act of 1986 reduced the distortionary effects of the tax code on capital investment decisions. However, a large portion of the reduction can be attributed to the change in the average tax rate.

Economic feasibility of Texas Blacklands corn production in relation to sorghum, wheat, and cotton is studied. Biophysical simulation generated yield data are integrated with an economic decision model using quadratic programming. Given the various scenarios analyzed, corn is economically feasible for the Blacklands. A crop mix of half corn and half cotton production is selected under risk neutrality with wheat entering if risk aversion is present. Corn and grain sorghum production are highly substitutable. Profit effects attributed to changing corn planting dates are more pronounced than profit changes resulting from altering corn population or maturity class.

The purpose of the study was to ascertain the competitive and complementary potential of fresh vegetable production relative to traditional row crop production using a regional partial equilibrium model. It seems clear from the analysis that vegetable crops are not destined in the near future to replace row crops in terms of land utilization. Nevertheless, vegetable crops appear to compete with and complement row crops well as evidenced by substantial increases in production as market share was assumed to increase. However, fresh vegetables cannot be considered as residual enterprises to which producers move when the demand for row crops declines. Even with a simulated 20 percent decrease in the demand for row crops, the acreage of fresh vegetables did not increase.

A major objective ofthe Food Security Act of 1985 was to make the United States more competitive in world markets. U.S. wheat exports in 1987/88 were 75 percent above their 1985/86 level. This paper analyzes the change in U.S. competitiveness in wheat exports by quantitatively assessing those factors responsible for this export expansion. The results indicate that about half of the increase can be attributed to the provisions ofthe 1985 Act. About 40 percent ofthe increase is due to nonprice factors in the Soviet Union and China—namely production shortfalls and domestic policies—that increased import demand. The rest is due to reduced competitor yields.

Most previous estimates of elasticities of export demand for U.S. soybeans have emanated from single import equations subject to aggregation and simultaneous equation bias. This analysis tests U.S. soybean export data for aggregation and simultaneous equation bias and divides the aggregate data into six market equations to reduce these biases. Elasticity estimates from the six equations are compared with elasticity estimates from single equation OLS and 2SLS estimations using the same aggregate data. Results suggest that distortions from unjustified 2SLS estimation may exceed those from aggregation bias.

Price equations incorporating USDA October crop forecasts and June pecan stocks provided reasonable formulations for pecan price explanation and forecasting. USDA crop forecasts exceeded final reported production in 12 of the 18 seasons from 1970 to 1987, probably resulting in slightly lower prices and crop values. Large crop forecast errors in both direction and level in 1986 and 1987 confounded the price determination process. Nevertheless, producer prices may have been lower absent the October crop forecasts, which somewhat reduce buyers' uncertainty regarding supply. Early crop estimates provided a better explanation of price behavior than postseason revised production data.

The objective of this study was to identify factors which contributed to the financial performance of 81 selected dairy farms in Tennessee. The study analyzes several measures of financial performance including cash farm income, net farm income, and returns to operator labor and management. Regressions with ten explanatory variables were used to determine factors that explained the variation in the measures of financial performance. Production per cow, number of cows, price received for milk, forage costs, and level of debt use appeared to influence financial performance.

This study determines the effect of government payments on real agricultural asset values using Bayesian vector autoregression. In developing the empirical model, special attention is focused on the informational content of government payments. The results indicate that government payments to farmers have little effect on real asset values in the long run. In the short run, an increase in government payments to farmers may be associated with decline in asset values.

A mixed integer linear programming model was developed to simulate the decision environment faced by an entry-level vegetable producer contemplating production for the whole-sale market. The model included activities which permitted consideration of 13 vegetable crops within a spring, summer, and fall rotational system. Rotations were permitted within given bounds established by marketing, rotational, and price risk constraints. Rotations were generally stable with respect to markets and relative to crop mixes as target income and acceptable negative deviation levels were varied. Spring and fall broccoli and turnip greens and late spring-summer yellow and zucchini squash were dominant crops in the triple crop rotations in the Atlanta and Cincinnati markets.

Variation in annual soybean plantings contributes to uncertainty in supplies of and demand for soybean seed in the southeastern U.S. This study used an expenditure valuation approach in an hedonic analysis framework to estimate returns to soybean seed quality differentiation. Analysis of pooled cross-sectional and time series observations narrowed important quality characteristics to yield and disease resistance attributes. In general, unexpected environmental factors affect seed crops over time, and the demand for other performance attributes is less predictable than for expected yield attributes. The results also suggest that geographical location is not significantly related to sales of varietal soybean seed in the study area.

This study reports results from a nation-wide survey of public attitudes toward agriculture. The study focuses on attitudes toward government involvement in agriculture across regions of the county and residential categories.

Income variability and means for managing risk continue to receive much attention in farm management research. In this paper, irrigation is presented as a risk-management strategy that offers potential diversification benefits. Potential diversification opportunities largely result from a wider range of enterprise production activities. A portfolio analysis of dryland and irrigated farm scenarios indicates that income stabilizing and diversification effects of irrigation substantially modify the risk-return position of a typical farm in northeast Louisiana. Safety-first considerations along with Target MOT AD programming procedures also are used to evaluate the impact of irrigation on the farm's financial performance.

A microcomputer program to perform Generalized Stochastic Dominance (GSD), Quasi-Second Degree Dominance (SSD), and Quasi-First Degree Stochastic Dominance (FSD) is described. The program is designed to run on IBM-compatible personal computers with a Hercules or CGA graphics adapter. It is menu-driven and has options for GSD, quasi-FSD, quasi-SSD, graphics, and calculations of premiums associated with use of dominant distributions.

Interviews of customers at direct produce markets were conducted to determine why expenditure patterns vary. Frequency of shopping at outlets, income, uses of produce, household composition, and distance to the outlet are important determinants of expenditures at direct product outlets.

XLAYER, an expert/knowledge-based microcomputer program, was designed and developed to diagnose layer management problems and recommend expert remedial management advice. The program also provokes management action by calculating the economic loss attributed to major management problems. It analyzes data generated by a commercially marketed layer performance financial microcomputer program and has demonstrated the ability to emulate poultry management experts in the diagnoses of 80 individual layer management problems. The program provides scarce expert poultry management advice to poultry layer managers regardless of size and scale of operation.

The Market Risk Game is a computerized simulation game available for IBM PC and Apple II microcomputers that is designed to give realistic practice in making decisions in a risky market environment. It illustrates the use of hedging and put options to reduce risk in livestock and grain markets. It is best suited for individuals who have a basic understanding of commodity trading, but who need experience to solidify their knowledge to a functional level. Through the game, this is done without facing the risk of an actual investment or requiring the time involved in watching a market over an extended period.

A minicomputer online information retrieval program is described that is designed to facilitate timely distribution of agricultural market news to state and county research and extension faculty. These faculty have designed programs that extend this information to clientele in their areas. An evaluation indicates that users find great value in this network. Usage has grown rapidly over the period the network has been available. This program is available and can be used by other states and clientele.

Poor management of the southeastern vegetable marketing cooperatives has been linked to poor record keeping practices. The VEGMARC II© Record Keeping Program is part of a comprehensive multi-agency effort to provide solutions to the problems of south-eastern vegetable marketing cooperatives. This computer program has been refined and expanded during four years of field testing. VEGMARC II© features include pool price calculations, deduction of packing fees, calculation of grower net returns, and the printing of reports, checks, and mailing labels. Eighty percent of cooperatives responding to user surveys indicated the program was meeting the needs of their cooperative.

The major mechanisms for the transference of price and output risk by crop producers are examined. These include the use of futures and options contracts, government price-support and deficiency-payments programs, and crop insurance. Iso-revenue curves are used to highlight the distinctions between these alternatives.

“Finding Your Agricultural Advantage” is a collection of four programs—one to generate case studies, one to do “trial-and-error” solutions, one to display linear programming solutions, and one to maintain case study data files. The four programs can be used together or individually as instructor preferences dictate in teaching farm planning. A step-by-step method for teaching with the software is presented as an example of its use.