Farm Transitions Workshop: Ensuring A Sound Legacy for Your Farm
A Two-Part, 4-day Workshop:  March 4-5 & 25-26, 2013

Click there to register for the workshop.

If you own a farm or farmland, thoughtful planning may be the greatest gift you can give your children, grandchildren, or your community. Too many farms get sold to the highest bidder who think nothing of plowing over years of thoughtful management in pursuit of short-term gains.

Attend this very special Farm Succession and Estate Planning workshop and begin to get your plan in place. This workshop will be led by Attorney John Baker, an internationally known expert on farm succession planning. His 30 years of experience working with families on planning for the future has made him the “go-to” guy on farm succession. Baker has conducted workshops in Iowa, Alaska, Nebraska, and Vermont and is now coming to Minnesota. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to get extensive assistance and hands-on help developing your plan.

The two-part, 4-day workshop will assist farm families to plan for the eventual transition of their farm. The two-session workshops will be held on consecutive days to allow for plenty of conversation and time to develop sound plans. The workshops are planned as a multi-generational event for current farm owners and for their heirs or non-family members to whom they hope to transfer the farm.

Workshop Agenda:

Monday – March 4, 2013, 8:30a - 5:00p
• What are we trying to find out?
• What did you say?
• Wants, needs, expectations, fears
• Retirement planning
• Financing retirement
• Can’t we all just get along?

Tuesday – March 5, 2013, 8:30a - 3:00p
• The most important things in my life are...
• Years from now we will...
• What are we doing?
• Setting the guideposts

Monday – March 25, 2013, 8:30p - 5:00p
• Knowing the numbers
• Strategic business planning
• Transfer planning
• Estate planning

Tuesday – March 26, 2013, 8:30a - 3:00p
• Reviewing the process
• The Critical Path process

If you attend, you’ll walk out of the final session with: the beginning of a plan, answers to questions, and contacts to experts who can help finish your plan.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is offering aquatic invasive species (AIS) training to owners of lake service provider businesses in Minnesota so they can legally work in the state’s waters.

For lake service providers that don’t already have permits, the DNR is offering a number of training sessions in the next several months. The schedule is available at http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/rlp/permits/lsp/lsp-ais-training.pdf.

Businesses are legally required attend AIS training and acquire a permit before being hired to place or remove water-related equipment from state waters. The law, passed by the Minnesota Legislature in 2011, aims to help prevent the spread of AIS.

“More than 800 lake service businesses attended AIS training last year and are now in compliance with the new law,” said April Rust, AIS training coordinator. “We’re eager to train the remaining businesses in Minnesota.”

The businesses that have taken training are included on the DNR’s list of permitted service providers at http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/rlp/permits/lsp/lsp-permits.pdf.

Lake service providers include canoe outfitters, dock haulers, marina owners, dock/lift installers, boat or yacht clubs, irrigation equipment installers and others who conduct work that involves placing or removing water-related equipment from any state waters.

Visit the DNR website at www.mndnr.gov/lsp to learn which businesses need a permit. For more information or to register for a training session, contact April Rust at april.rust@state.mn.us or call 651-259-5706.