Bill Text: NY A10301 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Includes the use of farmer-purchased farmland protection agreements in the commissioner's evaluation of applications for funding for agricultural protection plans.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 40-6)
Status: (Passed) 2018-07-31 - signed chap.158 [A10301 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-A10301-Amended.html
Bill Title: Includes the use of farmer-purchased farmland protection agreements in the commissioner's evaluation of applications for funding for agricultural protection plans.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 40-6)
Status: (Passed) 2018-07-31 - signed chap.158 [A10301 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-A10301-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 10301--A IN ASSEMBLY April 10, 2018 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. BARRETT, COOK, SEPULVEDA, MAGEE, MONTESANO -- read once and referred to the Committee on Agriculture -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to the acquisition of agricultural preservation restrictions The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 321 of the agriculture and markets law, as added 2 by chapter 797 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 321. Statement of legislative findings and intent. It is hereby 4 found and declared that agricultural lands are irreplaceable state 5 assets. In an effort to maintain the economic viability, and environ- 6 mental and landscape preservation values associated with agriculture, 7 the state must explore ways to sustain the state's valuable farm economy 8 and to protect and invest in the people and the land base associated 9 with it. External pressures on farm stability such as population growth 10 in non-metropolitan areas and public infrastructure development, and 11 non-agricultural interest in protected farmland, pose a significant 12 threat to farm operations, yet are the pressures over which farmers have 13 the least control. Local initiatives in agricultural protection policy, 14 facilitated by the agricultural districts program established in article 15 twenty-five-AA of this chapter, have proved effective as a basic step in 16 addressing these pressures. In an effort to encourage further develop- 17 ment of agricultural and farmland protection programs, and to recognize 18 both the crucial role that local government plays in developing these 19 strategies, plus the state constitutional directive to the legislature 20 to provide for the protection of agricultural lands, it is therefore 21 declared the policy of the state to promote local initiatives for agri- 22 cultural and farmland protection. 23 § 2. Section 322 of the agriculture and markets law is amended by 24 adding four new subdivisions 6, 7, 8, and 9 to read as follows: 25 6. "Affordability provision" means a preemptive purchase right or 26 other provisions included in an agricultural conservation easement or in EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD13903-05-8A. 10301--A 2 1 an addendum thereto, the purpose of which is to ensure that protected 2 farmland is affordable to qualified farmers. 3 7. "Preemptive purchase right" means the preferential right, estab- 4 lished in an agricultural conservation easement or in an addendum there- 5 to, of the easement holder, or its assignee, to purchase protected farm- 6 land at its agricultural use value in the event that the landowner 7 intends to sell to an unqualified party. The purpose of the preemptive 8 purchase right is to promote the continued presence of owner-operated 9 farms and ensure the affordability of protected farmland to qualified 10 farmers. 11 8. "Agricultural use value" means the as-restricted fair market value 12 of the property based on the productive commercial agricultural use 13 value or current agricultural use value of the property, rather than the 14 "highest and best" potential use value for residential or other non- 15 agricultural purposes. 16 9. "Qualified farmer" is a person who will maintain commercial agri- 17 cultural use of protected farmland and, in the last two years, has 18 earned at least one-half of his or her annual gross income from the 19 "business of farming," as defined by the U.S. Department of the Treas- 20 ury, or who meets equivalent qualifications as set forth in the agricul- 21 tural conservation easement. 22 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 325 of the agriculture and markets law, 23 as amended by chapter 150 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as 24 follows: 25 1. Subject to the availability of funds, a program is hereby estab- 26 lished to finance through state assistance payments the state share of 27 the costs of locally-led agricultural and farmland protection activ- 28 ities. State assistance payments for planning activities shall not 29 exceed fifty thousand dollars to each county agricultural and farmland 30 protection board or one hundred thousand dollars to two such boards 31 applying jointly, and shall not exceed fifty percent of the cost of 32 preparing an agricultural and farmland protection plan. State assistance 33 payments for planning activities shall not exceed twenty-five thousand 34 dollars to each municipality other than a county or fifty thousand 35 dollars to two such municipalities applying jointly, and shall not 36 exceed seventy-five percent of the cost of preparing an agricultural and 37 farmland protection plan. A county which has an approved farmland 38 protection plan may after one hundred twenty months from the date of 39 such approval by the commissioner apply for additional state assistance 40 payments for planning activities related to the updating of their 41 current plan or development of a new farmland protection plan. Such 42 additional state assistance payments shall not exceed fifty thousand 43 dollars to each county agricultural and farmland protection board or one 44 hundred thousand dollars to two such boards applying jointly, and shall 45 not exceed fifty percent of the cost of preparing an agricultural and 46 farmland protection plan. State assistance payments for implementation 47 of approved agricultural and farmland protection plans may fund up to 48 seventy-five percent of the cost of implementing the county plan or 49 portion of the plan for which state assistance payments are requested. 50 State assistance payments to such counties shall not exceed seventy-five 51 percent of the cost of implementing the local plan or portion of the 52 plan for which state assistance has been requested. Such maximum shall 53 be increased by a percentage equal to the percentage of the total eligi- 54 ble costs for such specified projects that are contributed by the owner 55 of the agricultural land for which the project is being funded, 56 provided, however, that in no event shall the total of such stateA. 10301--A 3 1 assistance payments exceed eighty-seven and one-half percent of such 2 eligible costs for any specified project. Affordability provisions, such 3 as a preemptive purchase right, shall be considered eligible costs for 4 state assistance payments for implementation of approved agricultural 5 and farmland protection plans. 6 § 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 7 have become a law; provided however that effective immediately, the 8 addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary 9 for the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized 10 to be made and completed on or before such effective date.
