Bill Text: IA HF304 | 2013-2014 | 85th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to the taxation of forest reservations and fruit-tree reservations and including retroactive applicability provisions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-12-31 - END OF 2013 ACTIONS [HF304 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2013-HF304-Introduced.html
House
File
304
-
Introduced
HOUSE
FILE
304
BY
HANSON
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
relating
to
the
taxation
of
forest
reservations
1
and
fruit-tree
reservations
and
including
retroactive
2
applicability
provisions.
3
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
4
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Section
1.
Section
427C.12,
unnumbered
paragraph
2,
Code
1
2013,
is
amended
to
read
as
follows:
2
The
board
of
supervisors
shall
designate
the
county
3
conservation
board
or
the
assessor
who
shall
inspect
the
area
4
for
which
an
application
is
filed
for
a
fruit-tree
or
forest
5
reservation
tax
exemption
before
the
application
is
accepted.
6
Use
of
aerial
photographs
may
be
substituted
for
on-site
7
inspection
when
appropriate.
The
application
can
only
be
8
accepted
if
it
meets
the
criteria
established
by
the
natural
9
resource
commission
to
be
a
fruit-tree
or
forest
reservation.
10
Once
the
application
has
been
accepted,
the
area
shall
continue
11
to
receive
the
tax
exemption
during
each
year
in
which
the
12
area
is
maintained
as
a
fruit-tree
or
forest
reservation
13
without
the
owner
having
to
refile.
If
the
property
is
14
sold
or
transferred,
the
seller
shall
notify
the
buyer
that
15
all,
or
part
of,
the
property
is
in
fruit-tree
or
forest
16
reservation
and
subject
to
the
recapture
tax
provisions
of
17
this
section
.
The
tax
exemption
shall
continue
to
be
granted
18
for
the
remainder
of
the
eight-year
period
for
fruit-tree
19
reservation
and
for
the
following
years
for
forest
reservation
20
or
until
the
property
no
longer
qualifies
as
a
fruit-tree
or
21
forest
reservation.
The
area
may
be
inspected
each
year
by
22
the
county
conservation
board
or
the
assessor
to
determine
if
23
the
area
is
maintained
as
a
fruit-tree
or
forest
reservation.
24
If
the
area
is
not
maintained
or
is
used
for
economic
gain
25
other
than
as
a
fruit-tree
reservation
during
any
year
of
the
26
eight-year
exemption
period
and
any
year
of
the
following
five
27
years
or
as
a
forest
reservation
during
any
year
for
which
the
28
exemption
is
granted
and
any
of
the
five
years
following
those
29
exemption
years,
the
assessor
shall
assess
the
property
for
30
taxation
at
its
fair
market
value
as
of
January
1
of
that
year
31
and
in
addition
the
area
shall
be
subject
to
a
recapture
tax.
32
However,
the
area
shall
not
be
subject
to
the
recapture
tax
if
33
the
owner,
including
one
possessing
under
a
contract
of
sale,
34
and
the
owner’s
direct
antecedents
or
descendants
have
owned
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the
area
for
more
than
ten
years.
The
For
taxes
applicable
1
to
assessment
years
beginning
before
January
1,
2013,
the
2
tax
shall
be
computed
by
multiplying
the
consolidated
levy
3
for
each
of
those
years,
if
any,
of
the
five
preceding
years
4
for
which
the
area
received
the
exemption
for
fruit-tree
or
5
forest
reservation
times
the
assessed
value
of
the
area
that
6
would
have
been
taxed
but
for
the
tax
exemption.
For
taxes
7
applicable
to
assessment
years
beginning
on
or
after
January
1,
8
2013,
the
tax
shall
be
computed
by
multiplying
the
consolidated
9
levy
for
each
of
those
years,
if
any,
of
the
five
preceding
10
years
for
which
the
area
received
the
exemption
for
fruit-tree
11
or
forest
reservation,
less
the
amount
of
those
levies
or
12
portions
of
levies
specified
in
section
427C.12A,
subsection
13
1,
paragraphs
“a”
through
“f”
,
for
each
of
those
years,
times
14
the
assessed
value
of
the
area
that
would
have
been
taxed
but
15
for
the
tax
exemption.
This
tax
shall
be
entered
against
16
the
property
on
the
tax
list
for
the
current
year
and
shall
17
constitute
a
lien
against
the
property
in
the
same
manner
as
18
a
lien
for
property
taxes.
The
tax
when
collected
shall
be
19
apportioned
in
the
manner
provided
for
the
apportionment
of
the
20
property
taxes
for
the
applicable
tax
year.
21
Sec.
2.
NEW
SECTION
.
427C.12A
Amount
of
exemption.
22
1.
For
assessment
years
beginning
on
or
after
January
23
1,
2013,
forest
reservations
and
fruit-tree
reservations
24
fulfilling
the
conditions
of
this
chapter
shall
be
exempt
from
25
taxation
except
for
the
following
tax
levies:
26
a.
General
county
services
levy
under
section
331.423,
27
subsection
1.
28
b.
Rural
county
services
levy
under
section
331.423,
29
subsection
2.
30
c.
Township
levy
under
section
359.43.
31
d.
County
levy
under
section
331.385,
if
the
county
is
32
exercising
the
powers
and
duties
of
township
trustees
relating
33
to
fire
protection
service
and
emergency
medical
service.
34
e.
County
hospital
levies
under
section
347.7.
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f.
Those
portions
of
a
city’s
tax
levy
for
the
city’s
1
general
fund
under
section
384.1
that
are
attributable
to
2
programs
in
the
city
budget
for
any
of
the
following:
3
(1)
Public
safety,
including
the
equipping
of
fire,
police,
4
emergency
services,
sanitation,
street,
and
civil
defense
5
departments.
6
(2)
The
establishment,
construction,
reconstruction,
7
repair,
equipping,
remodeling,
and
extension
of
public
works,
8
public
utilities,
and
public
transportation
systems,
and
the
9
acquisition
of
real
estate
needed
for
such
purposes.
10
(3)
The
construction,
reconstruction,
or
repair
of
streets,
11
highways,
bridges,
sidewalks,
pedestrian
underpasses
and
12
overpasses,
and
street
lighting
fixtures,
and
the
acquisition
13
of
real
estate
needed
for
such
purposes.
14
2.
The
department
of
management
shall
adopt
rules
necessary
15
to
implement
this
section.
16
Sec.
3.
Section
441.22,
Code
2013,
is
amended
to
read
as
17
follows:
18
441.22
Forest
and
fruit-tree
reservations.
19
Forest
and
fruit-tree
reservations
fulfilling
the
conditions
20
of
sections
427C.1
to
427C.13
and
to
the
extent
provided
21
under
section
427C.12A
shall
be
exempt
from
taxation.
In
all
22
other
cases
where
trees
are
planted
upon
any
tract
of
land,
23
without
regard
to
area,
for
forest,
fruit,
shade,
or
ornamental
24
purposes,
or
for
windbreaks,
the
assessor
shall
not
increase
25
the
valuation
of
the
property
because
of
such
improvements.
26
Sec.
4.
RETROACTIVE
APPLICABILITY.
This
Act
applies
27
retroactively
to
January
1,
2013,
for
assessment
years
28
beginning
on
or
after
that
date.
29
EXPLANATION
30
Code
chapter
427C
establishes
a
forest
reservation
and
31
fruit-tree
reservation
property
tax
exemption.
In
order
to
32
qualify
for
the
tax
exemption,
a
forest
reservation
must
have
a
33
minimum
of
two
acres
with
not
less
than
200
trees
per
acre
and
34
a
fruit-tree
reservation
must
have
at
least
10
acres
with
at
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least
40
apple
trees
or
70
other
fruit
trees.
The
exemption
1
applies
in
perpetuity
for
forest
tree
reservations
and
eight
2
years
for
fruit-tree
reservations.
Neither
reservation
can
be
3
used
for
grazing
livestock
or
for
economic
gain
other
than
the
4
gain
from
raising
fruit
or
forest
trees.
5
This
bill
enacts
new
Code
section
427C.12A
which
specifies
6
property
tax
levies
for
which
the
forest
reservation
and
7
fruit-tree
reservation
property
tax
exemption
shall
not
apply.
8
The
bill
provides
that
for
assessment
years
beginning
on
or
9
after
January
1,
2013,
forest
reservations
and
fruit-tree
10
reservations
fulfilling
the
conditions
of
Code
chapter
427C
are
11
exempt
from
taxation
except
for
all
of
the
following
levies
or
12
portions
of
levies:
(1)
general
county
services
levy
under
13
Code
section
331.423(1);
(2)
rural
county
services
levy
under
14
Code
section
331.423(2);
(3)
township
levy
for
fire
protection
15
and
certain
other
emergency
services
under
Code
section
359.43;
16
(4)
county
levy
for
emergency
services
under
Code
section
17
331.385;
(5)
county
hospital
levies
under
Code
section
347.7;
18
and
(6)
those
portions
of
a
city’s
tax
levy
for
the
city’s
19
general
fund
under
Code
section
384.1
that
are
attributable
to
20
programs
in
the
city
budget
for
purposes
specified
in
the
bill,
21
including
public
safety,
public
works,
and
road
construction
22
and
repair.
23
The
bill
requires
the
department
of
management
to
adopt
24
rules
necessary
to
implement
new
Code
section
427C.12A.
25
The
bill
applies
retroactively
to
January
1,
2013,
for
26
assessment
years
beginning
on
or
after
that
date.
27
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