DOUGLAS — Tony Straathof is the returning president of the Renfrew County National Farmers Union and Tim Tabbert has reclaimed the vice-president’s position.
The annual elections of the Renfrew County National Farmers Union (RC NFU), Local 330, was held Monday night during the annual general meeting, held at the Barr Line Community Centre.
Prior to elections, Eganville lawyer Stewart Lavigueur spoke about estate planning and new legislation.
He noted there is mis-information about a new administration tax. He said a will can be probated at any time and it’s three months from the time of probation that the new administration tax must be paid. Some people believe it’s from the person’s time of death, which is incorrect, Mr. Lavigueur stated.
Also, there is no more guesstimating how much something is worth, Mr. Lavigueur said. All of the more expensive items have to be appraised, he said.
When people are filling out various forms, such as insurance, Registered Retirement Savings Plans, etc., name a beneficiary, and then that money will not be included in the probate, he explained.
As for wills, it’s just not true that if you don’t have one the government gets everything, Mr. Lavigueur said. The government will try and find a relative, whether it be a child, niece or nephew, sibling, aunt or uncle, etc., he said.
“The government only gets it if no family members are found,” he stressed.
But, if there’s a will it makes life a lot easier for those left behind, Mr. Lavigueur said.
“The will will not allow fighting, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be challenged,” he added.
He said it’s important if you don’t want fighting to leave personal items with no monetary value to those you want to have them.
It’s very important people have a Power of Attorney for property as well as for personal care, he said.
Mr. Lavigueur said each death has its own concerns, so the better prepared the surviving family members are, the better. For more information, he suggested people talk to a lawyer and they can also review the Ontario Executors Face New Probate Filing Rules which became effective Jan. 1, 2015.
Mr. Lavigueur was thanked by Mr. Straathof and presented with a gift from the Whitewater Brewing Company near Beachburg.
While there were not many people at the meeting due to the poor weather conditions, other annual general meeting business was taken care of. The minutes from last year were read and approved. Secretary/treasurer Connie Tabbert advised the official financial report will be presented at the Monday, March 7 regular monthly meeting. Mr. Straathof gave a quick review of what the RC NFU accomplished in the past year.
During the elections, Mr. Straathof retained his president’s position, and Mr. Tabbert was acclaimed vice-president since Marshall Buchanan stepped down.
Directors are Dave Mackay, Mr. Buchanan, Lauretta Rice and Bruce Karlstrom. One of the directors-at-large is Margaret Robinson. There are a few directors-at-large from last year who will be contacted to see if they want to retain their position. While that is not the norm, it was agreed by those who were there to contact them due to the adverse weather conditions.
Ms. Tabbert was re-appointed secretary/treasurer.
The RC NFU meets the first Monday of each month at 7:30 p.m. at the Barr Line Community Centre. Anyone who wants to attend is invited.
Jan Slomp, the president of the National Farmers Union, is attending Monday night’s meeting.
