Tia M. McDonald

Research Agricultural Economist
tia.mcdonald@usda.gov

Briefly

Tia McDonald is a research agricultural economist in the Farm Economy Branch. Her research focuses on household and business financial health and the various implications of tax policy. Additionally, she maintains a strong research interest in other regional economic topics such as health policy and individual and community responses to disasters.

Background

Prior to joining ERS in 2020, Tia was a member of the faculty in the economics department at Ohio University. Interspersed with her education have been research posts in South Dakota State University’s economics department and UC Berkeley’s Institute for Transportation Studies.

Education

Tia completed her Ph.D. in agricultural economics from Purdue University in 2014 with a specialization in spatial, health, and population economics. She also holds an M.S. in agricultural economics and a B.A. in political science from Colorado State University.

An Analysis of the Effect of Sunsetting Tax Provisions for Family Farm Households COVID-19 Working Paper: Farm Sector Financial Ratios: Pre-COVID Forecasts and Pandemic Performance for 2020 The Effect on Family Farms of Changing Capital Gains Taxation at Death COVID-19 Working Paper: Financial Assistance for Farm Operations and Farm Households in the Face of COVID-19

Farm Households Face Larger Tax Liabilities When Provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Expire Farm Size, Specialization Are Among Factors Influencing Financial Performance of African-American Farms in the United States U.S. Farm Sector Financial Measures Show Little Variation From Prepandemic Expectations ERS Modeling Shows Most Farm Estates Would Have No Change in Capital Gains Tax Liability Under Proposed Changes U.S. Farm Producers Received Almost $6 Billion From the Paycheck Protection Program in 2020

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Federal Tax Issues