IRS Announces Counties Subject to Drought

Every year the IRS determines counties affected by exceptional, extreme or severe drought. A rancher has an additional year to replace livestock located in one of these counties.

The IRS today released an advance version of Notice 2023-67 as guidance for farmers and ranchers who were forced to sell livestock on account of drought in specific counties—generally, a county designated as eligible for federal assistance plus counties contiguous to that county.

The IRS issued Notice 2023-67 on September 27, 2023. This notice lists counties that experienced exceptional, extreme, or severe drought conditions during the 12-month period ending August 31, 2023. If a ranch operation is located in one of these counties or a contiguous county, then they may extend their replacement period under section 1033(e) for sales of livestock by one full year.

The only state not listed in this notice was Alaska. All other states had at least one county experiencing these levels of drought for at least one week during the year ended August 31, 2023. Simply having one week of exceptional, extreme or severe drought extends the replacement period by one year.