Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Refund policy simplified

An organization created by the Manitoba government to promote beef processing in the province announced this afternoon that it has simplified its policy for refunding levies paid by producers.

The Manitoba Cattle Enhancement Council collects $2 per head on all cattle sold in the province to invest in new slaughter capacity and enhance the market for value-added beef products.

The council said in a press release today that effective Jan. 1 producers can apply for a refund on receipts that are post-marked or received within a year in which the fee was deducted.

Previously, cattle producers faced a fixed deadline, twice a year, for applying for levy refunds. The $2 fee is automatically deducted by auction marts at the time of sale and forwarded to the council.

The MCEC said the new procedure will reduce paperwork for producers as well as for itself.

The province is matching the $2 levy collected from producers for three years.

The levy was a source of controversy in the farm community when it was initially announced, as the government had sought to make it compulsory.

The province later relented, agreeing to allow the council to refund the levy, upon request, twice a year.

In its last six-month reporting period, the MCEC said it collected $678,000 from producers to the end of June. About $280,000 was later paid back to farmers requesting refunds, leaving 59 per cent of the levies collected in the fund.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 10, 2008 $sourceSection$sourcePage

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