Monday, September 27, 2004

Horse owners can write off $100,000

By Melvin Claxton, and Ronald J. Hansen / The Detroit News

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It’s a tax deduction most Americans know little about and few but the wealthy use — the horse write-off.

Anyone who purchased or leased a horse after Sept. 12, 2001, can now write off $100,000 in horse-related expenses each year. Under the law, horse owners can deduct food, stabling, transportation, insurance, veterinary care, and even local and state taxes for the animal.

The tax change expanded an existing exemption originally intended for far less affluent taxpayers.

The horse deduction was created to aid farmers and ranchers when horses were a critical part of their operation. But in recent years, the break has become a shelter for the rich, many of whom own horses for pleasure.

Congress sweetened this exemption in the months after the September 11 terrorist attacks by allowing horse owners and businesses to write off their expenses more quickly.

In 2002, President Bush and Congress allowed horse owners to write off half the purchase price of a horse within a year. Under the old law, owners took seven years to write off the purchase.

The faster depreciation schedule was set to expire earlier this month. But Congress has already extended the deadline to December and may not allow it to end at all. That’s because the horse provision and other deductions were tied to a popular exemption that affects many taxpayers — the child tax credit.