The aim of the study was to assess the economic and production-related situation of Polish agriculture during the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis covered the years 2015-2021, i.e. in addition to the years of the pandemic’s occurrence in Poland (2020-2021), the research period included 5 earlier years, in order to identify possible changes during the pandemic. In order to attain the objective, the data from the Economic Accounts for Agriculture – EAA, published by Eurostat, was used. A library query and secondary data from the Eurostat database were employed. Over the years 2015-2021, the value and quantity of agricultural production in Poland increased. In the first year of the pandemic, the value of production increased nominally by 13.7%, and by 8% in real terms. This growth mainly stemmed from the increase in the volume of plant production. The second year of the pandemic brought a slight decrease in the production volume – by 0.8%. It resulted primarily from yield deterioration. The time of the pandemic was characterized by considerable changes in agricultural income. Unfavourable price changes in 2021, related to a large increase in costs, caused the income from agriculture rise in the first year of the pandemic, but over the second year of COVID-19, the income situation deteriorated significantly. Worse farming conditions related mainly to an increase in the cost of loans and the prices of production means may have a significant impact on the food security of the Polish society.

The article addresses issues related to measuring poverty and social exclusion in large cities and rural areas of the European Union and examines the essence of these phenomena. It was written on the basis of source literature and statistical data from Eurostat. In the theoretical part, definitions and standards used to assess the analysed social phenomena were presented. The results confirmed that the risk of poverty and social exclusion is higher in rural areas of the European Community. Furthermore, it was noted that in most EU countries relative poverty is higher in rural areas, whereas severe material deprivation and low labour intensity are characteristic of large urban areas.

The paper sets out the key principles for taxation of agriculture in selected European Union countries. The theoretical foundations of tax systems in the context of their functions and features specified as desirable in the literature are discussed. EU agricultural taxation systems are presented in reference to optimisation and tax competitiveness. Some shared features of these agricultural taxation systems were pointed out and their division in two basic models (the British model and the continental model), which was presented taking as example the countries in which these models operate. Taxation of income derived from agricultural business activity is a natural direction of changes in tax systems. The tax policy implemented in the European Union countries in relation to agriculture make use of the principle of tax justice to the highest possible extent. The diversity of the tax rules and structures applied in the EU makes it possible to tax agricultural income without limiting the development potential of agricultural enterprises (farms), and often stimulates them. The form of individual tax systems results from numerous economic, social and political circumstances. Special tax treatment of agriculture is expressed through tax construction elements, e.g. right to deduct the value of generated loss or investment expenditure from taxable income.

This study investigates the concept of the stability of the state and the public finance sector (PFS) based on a review of current literature in the field. An attempt has been made to define the principles of public management and present the structures of public finance sector units (PFSU) in Poland. The study focuses on the public finance sector, units included in this sector, mechanisms influencing the functioning of public service organisations and their management. Part of the research is a case study analysis of a sample PFSU, which is a central administration body. The purpose of the study was to identify the measures used to assess the stability of a public finance sector unit and to interpret those measures in relation to the studied areas of the PFS in Poland. The paper explores the principles of managing the organisation of the public finance sector, the notion of public management and its genesis. The selected PFSU case was used to indicate the relationship between the functioning of a public finance sector unit and the stability of leadership in that unit. The study is descriptive and uses inference methods. The research material included the literature on public finance and management as well as internal materials of the studied public finance sector unit. The main objective of the study was to show how the destabilisation of leadership can affect the functioning of the state office. As a result of the analysis, measures most accurately describing the phenomenon of leadership stability have been constructed. They include: measures based on quantitative assessment, measures based on institutional behaviour assessment and measures based on the subjective opinions, behaviours and expectations of employees, stakeholders and associates of the PFSU. The existence of a relationship between the stability of leadership and the functioning of a public finance sector unit was confirmed. Changes were recorded in the functioning of the office during frequent personnel changes in senior civil service positions.

This paper presents decisions in force regarding legal acts regulating the direct sales by farmers in Poland. The current definition of direct sale, the conditions for its implementation and the principles of formation of the tax obligation are presented. Additionally, it presents the most important issues related to the carrying out direct sales of agricultural products by farmers. The principles of direct sales by farmers, the events which lead to the creation of the tax obligation connected with this sale and tax rules were discussed