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State Representative Kelby Woodard
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-7065
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LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Working to improve Green Acres program
To the editor
The Legislature made some changes in 2008, negatively impacting a number of residents in our area who participate in the Green Acres agricultural land program. I have co-authored a bill (HF12) to help resolve those issues and preliminary committee hearings are underway.
Here's a recap of what's transpired with this program:
Green Acres has been in place for more than 40 years, allowing farmers and landowners to keep their family farms in a tax classification where farms could be valued at their agricultural value. This protected them from rising valuations due to developmental pressures.
Some changes passed late in the 2008 session without having received due consideration on the House floor; they were buried deep within a raft of tax bill pages. Maybe there were some components of Green Acres which needed improvement, but the 2008 changes were too far-reaching and the consequences were devastating. For example, it became impossible for many farmers to continue owning their land and to pass it on to the next generation without huge tax liabilities. People were caught off-guard and rightly feared they would have no choice but to sell their property to escape the new tax burden; this legislation was going to break up the family farm.
Green Acres improvements have been enacted during the 2009 and 2010 sessions, but they nibbled around the edges and left many problems unresolved. Now, we are working to enact improvements that will make this program productive once again.
We are also making progress in other areas at the Capitol. Here's a quick video of me providing an overview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDCaXRhw4Cw. The input I continue receiving from local citizens is appreciated and I continue welcoming your thoughts, concerns and ideas.
Sincerely,
Rep. Kelby Woodard
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