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:: General Livestock - Appendix B - Interview Questions By Type
Appendix B -
Interview Questions By Type
Introduction
The following
interview guidelines were
downloaded from the IS/MSSP
Bulletin Board. As with any
interview questionnaire, use
these only as suggested guides.
Modification of the questions to
fit the needs of each audit is
absolutely necessary.
Development of
your interviewing skills
requires careful listening,
quick assimilation of the
information provided, and the
ability to follow-up. Asking
open ended questions to allow
discussion, rather than closed
end answers, brings out much
more information. Piecing the
information together results in
a complete picture of the
taxpayer's operation.
W/P TITLE
Initial Interview
SOURCE
______________________________
T/P _________________ TAX YR
________
DATE__________R/A _____ W/P
INDX______
Farm Initial
Interview
Name:
Address:
Phone Nos.
Rep:
Publication
1 T/P Rights?
Audit
History:
Who prepared
the return?
What
information was used to prepare
the return & is it available
today?
Have you found
any errors on the return that
you filed? What are they?
What type of
farming operation do you have?
(grain, hogs, dairy)
How many acres
do you own? Cash Rent?
Sharecrop?
How many acres
are in the following crops:
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Corn
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Soybeans
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Wheat
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Hay
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Other Crops
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Your
own land
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Rented land
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Sharecropped land
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How much on
farm storage capacity do you
have? Do you lease additional
storage facilities from others?
What is your
rental arrangement with the
various landowners? Written?
How much do you
pay per acre for cash rental?
Do you issue
1099s for the rents? Are copies
here for inspection?
On
sharecropping arrangements, do
you charge for harvesting the
crop and hauling the crop away?
Rates?
On
sharecropping arrangements, how
is the landlord billed and how
is it displayed on your tax
return for the input costs like
seed, chemicals & fertilizer?
How do you
report these payments that you
receive from the landlords?
How do you
report the income from the
harvesting?
Do you dry and
store the crop for the landlord?
Where do you
sell your crops? (Elevators,
Terminals, and individuals)
When do you
sell the crop, in the year grown
or in the following year?
How do you
treat CCC loans when the
proceeds are received? When you
repay the loan?
Do you sell all
of your production or is some
used for livestock feed by you?
If so, how many
bushels of corn would be used by
you for feed purposes and how
many acres of silage did you
harvest?
Did you
purchase any machinery, breeding
stock, or land in the year under
audit? If so, what was
purchased, COST? Trade ins?
Financing Agreements?
Did you sell
any machinery, land, timber, or
breeding stock in the year under
audit?
Did you incur
any land clearing charges or
soil & water conservation
expenses? Were there any amounts
paid for by the local
conservation office?
Do you have any
employees?
Who are
your primary suppliers of:
Seed:
Fertilizer:
Implement &
Tractor Repair Parts :
Fuel:
Chemicals:
Breeding
Stock:
Bank
Account Information
Checking
Savings
Investments
Do you maintain
a separate account for commodity
option trades?
How is your
operation financed?
Are your crops
or livestock pledged as
collateral for loan purposes? If
so, do you have a copy of the
financial statement that you
supplied to them at the time you
borrowed the funds?
Do you have any
other sources of income such as
W-2 wages, inheritances,
insurance proceeds, refunds,
rebates, or other income items.
Do you have any
machine hire or other custom
income?
Beef Interview
Questions
How many cows
did you have in the year of
audit?
What breed is
your herd?
What is the
average age of the herd?
Do you sell the
calves from your herd or finish
the feeders out?
Do you keep
some of the heifer calves for
herd replacement?
Do you use a
bull for breeding purposes or do
you use artificial insemination?
Do you market
your cattle through any third
party marketing agent and, if
so, who is it and where are they
located?
Where do you
market your cull cattle?
Who are your
suppliers of feed and supply
items?
Do you have any
arrangements with veterinarians
for a regular herd health care
program?
How many head
of cattle do you market each
year?
What is the
weight of the cattle when you
market them?
Does your tax
return reflect an amount for
personal consumption?
Did you buy any
feeders during the year of audit
and, if so, how many and from
whom were they acquired?
If the herd was
purchased, how was the
acquisition financed?
Describe the
feeding program. Are the feeders
finished off in a feedlot or on
pasture? (What are the feeds?
silage, hay, shelled corn, or
some combination.)
Follow-Up and Additional Notes:
Dairy Interview
Questions
How many cows
did you have in the year of
audit including the dry cows?
What breed is
your herd?
What is the
average age of the herd?
To whom do you
sell your milk?
How much do
they pay you per hundred weight
of milk?
What do you do
with the calves?
Do you keep the
heifer calves for herd
replacement?
Do you use a
bull for breeding purposes or do
you use artificial insemination?
How many times
a day do you milk?
Have you been
on a DHIA (Dairy Herd
Improvement Association) test?
What is your
herd's average milk production?
Who picks up
the milk at the farm and does
the dairy deduct the trucking
from your check?
Do you market
your milk through any third
party marketing agent and if so
who is it and where are they
located?
Where do you
market your cull cattle?
Who are your
suppliers of feed and supply
items?
Do you have any
arrangements with veterinarians
for a regular herd health care
program?
Follow-Up and Additional Notes:
Swine Interview
Questions
How many hogs
did you have for breeding
purposes in the year under
audit?
What breed is
your herd?
What is the
average litter size?
How many
litters a year do you average?
At what age do
you wean the pigs?
Are you a
farrow to finish, a feeder, or a
farrow only operation?
Do you keep any
gilts back for herd replacement?
Do you use a
boar or artificial insemination
for breeding purposes?
Do you market
your hogs through any third
party marketing agent and if so
who is it and where are they
located?
Where do you
market your stock?
Who are your
suppliers of feed and supply
items?
Do you have any
arrangements with veterinarians
for a regular herd health care
program?
Do you
advertise to sell breeding stock
or feeder pigs?
Do you sell any
pork directly to a consumers
after butchering a hog? (like
whole hog sausage or a pig for a
pig roast)
Have you
included an amount for your own
personal consumption on your tax
return?
Follow-Up and Additional Notes:
Sheep Interview
Questions
What is the
size of your flock in the year
under audit?
What breed is
your flock?
What is the
average number of lambs per ewe?
When do you
lamb?
Do you feed out
the lambs or sell them as feeder
lambs?
Do you keep any
lambs back for flock
replacement?
Do you market
your sheep through any third
party marketing agent and if so
who is it and where are they
located?
Where do you
market your stock?
Who are your
suppliers of feed and supply
items?
Do you have any
arrangements with veterinarians
for a regular herd health care
program?
Do you
advertise to sell breeding stock
or feeder lambs?
Do you sell any
lambs directly to consumers for
butchering?
Have you
included an amount for your own
personal consumption on your tax
return?
Who shears the
flock and who buys the wool
after the shearing?
Do you shear
the lambs before you sell them?
Have you
received any wool subsidy
payments from the government?
Follow-Up and Additional Notes:
Exotic Animal
Interview Questions
What types of
animals are you raising?
What is it that
you are going to sell? Eggs?
Meat? Pets? Fur?
How long have
you been raising them?
What is the
history of your operation?
(profit or loss)
Do you keep any
animals back for replacement
purposes?
How and where
do you market your stock?
Who are your
suppliers of feed and supply
items?
Do you have any
arrangements with veterinarians
for a regular herd health care
program?
Do you
advertise and if so how?
Is there
personal consumption of your
stock shown on your tax return?
What are your
plans for the future of the
venture?
Describe any
special problems or practices
that I should be aware of that
are unique to your industry.
Follow-Up and Additional Notes:
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