CEA 09-27-12 Meeting AgendaFrederick County
Conservation Easement Authority
ANkI•hO_l:-0 11
TO: Conservation Easement Authority
FROM: - Eric R. Lawrence, CEA Secretary f iv—
SUBJECT: September Meeting
DATE: September 12, 2012
The Frederick County Conservation Easement Authority will be meeting on Thursday,
September 27 2012 at 8:00 a.m. in the Board of Supervisor's Executive Session Meeting
Room in the County Administration Building, 107 North Kent Street, Winchester, Virginia. The
Conservation Easement Authority will discuss the following agenda items:
AGENDA
1. Welcome and Introductions
2, May 24, 2012 Meeting Minutes
3. Fundraising Efforts
a. www.GlFT.org – Give $1 for Frederick's Tomorrow
b. G1FT program Facebook page
c. Establishing matching fund source
4. Update from the Property Owner Easement Education Session in June
5. Next meeting date – October 25, 2012
6. Other
Please contact the Planning Department (540-655-5551) if you are unable to attend this
meeting.
CIO Frederick County Planning Department, 107 North Kent Street, Winchester, VA 22601 (540-665-5651)
MEETING MINUTES
OF THE
FREDERICK COUNTY CONSERVATION EASEMENT AUTHORITY
Held in the Executive Session Room of the Frederick County Administration Building at 107 North
Kent Street in Winchester, Virginia on May 24, 2012 at 8:00 a.m.
PRESENT: Diane Kearns, Chairman; Ron Clevenger; Robert Solenberger;a Elaine Cain, Treasurer;
John Marker; Todd Lodge; and Charles Triplett, Planning Commission Lasori' :,
ABSENT: Gene Fisher, Board of Supervisors Liaison;
STAFF ]PRESENT: Eric R. Lawrence, CEA Secretary; and Bev Dellinger, 8`6,`yqt IIl.
PUBLIC MEETING:
1. Welcome and Introductions
2. April 1.9, 2012 Meeting Minutes
On a motion by Mr. Solenbergera n conded by Mr. MaW
he minutes of April 19, 2012
were unanimously approved.
3. Fundraising Efforts
a. WWW.G1FT.or — Give $1 for Fred e ck'
b. 71FT Program F
gcebtiJ1'age
s
c. Establishing N#ching Fund ;Source
4. Planning for"Proo' ft Owni Easement Edui& dibn Session in June
Chairman Kearns told ai b rs that Ganserva#ft Partners is sponsoring an informational dinner
e Ieht3Y ° have an interest in conservation or easements of
for the p 0 of cdu a#mg. p op z ay
the aoc;: bitny nat know taw to make that happen. Conservation Partners has asked the
C A to provzde n`ae of people that we feel may have an interest in participating. The dinner is
s he, uled far June 18, 2fl12 from 6 00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Valley Farm Credit.
Mr.~1 arpnce provdecM ists of names for members to look over, one of which contained
Frederic p 6unty land h Jders who own 150 plus acres. This meeting was devoted to selecting
names for ohs rvation partners to invite to the dinner.
S. Neat Meeting Date .
June 28, 2012
6. Other
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 8:40 a.m.
Conservation Easement Authority Page - 176 -
May 24, 2012
Respectfully submitted,
Diane Kearns, Chairman
Eric R. Lawrence,
Conservation Easement Authority Page - 177 -
May 24, 2012
Delegate John M. O'Bannon III, Chair
Glen 5, Tittermary, Director
September 10, 2012
BACKGROUND
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Land conservation is the permanent protection of land from future development for the purpose of preserving its
conservation value. To conserve land, government entities and private land trusts will acquire either (1) the full legal title
or (2) a perpetual conservation easement that restricts future development on the land.
Virginia's nand Preservation Tax Credit provided landowners with $1.2 billion in tax credits for donated easements or
land between 2002 and 2011. Virginia provides additional financial support for land conservation by funding grant
programs and acquiring land fox public use, such as State parks. Recent governors have set goals to conserve 400,000
additional acres during their terms, and State agencies have goals to conserve specific types of land, including land with
public access. To date, about 3.8 million acres, or 15 percent of Virginia's total acreage, has been conserved.
Although the Commonwealth promotes land conservation through the Land Preservation Tax. Credit, there was concern
that Virginia lacks a stable source of revenue fox other conservation programs. Dedicated sources have provided Less than
2 percent of revenue for land conservation over the last decade, and the mandate for this study directed JLARC staff to
develop options for dedicated revenue sources.
KEY FINDINGS
Our review of funding for land conservation in Virginia found that:
o The Land Preservation Tax Credit accounted for nearly 90 percent of Virginia's financial support for land
conservation over the last decade. The tax credit has been a relatively stable and cost-efficient method of conserving
land, enabling the State to increase the total number of acres conserved by 24 percent between 2002 and 2011.
® Compared to grant and land acquisition programs, the tax credit has a relatively low ability to direct financial
support toward conserving priority land. Grant and land acquisition programs have received a low share of land
conservation revenue, and funding for grant programs has been unstable and difficult to predict.
• As a result, Virginia's approach to funding land conservation has the effect of emphasizing the conservation of
acreage over "priority land," such as land with public access or significant conservation value.
d Unlike Virginia, most other states do not provide tax credits for land conservation, but instead rely on grant and land
acquisition programa Virginia's tax credit is among the largest and can be among the most valuable to a taxpayer.
Summary of Options for Dedicated Revenue Sources
Virginia could maintain the current approach to funding land conservation if it wishes to emphasize the conservation of
acreage. Alternatively, it could adopt a balanced approach that gives increased emphasis to conserving priority land. The
following options for dedicated revenue sources would allow Virginia to adopt a more balanced funding approach:
a Two options would have minimal financial impact by redistributing existing land conservation. revenue.
• Two options could result in moderate amounts of additional revenue, and two options could result in substantial
revenue. These options would negatively impact taxpayers who use the Land Preservation 'Pax Credit, those paying
recordation taxes and fees on various transactions, and all taxpayers through the repayment of bond debt.
• A final option uses multiple sources to reduce the impact on taxpayers and raise a moderate amount of revenue.
Contact: info@jlarc.virginio.gov or 804-786-1258 Scan with a mobile device to access
http://jtarc.virginia.gov the report or go to
http://ilarc,virginic ,gov/reports/Rpt429.pdf
Eric Lawrence
Subject: FW: JLARC long-term land conservation report
From: Schmidt, Kevin (VDACS) [mai Ito: Kevin. Schmidt@vdacs.virginia.gov]
Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2012 9,38 AM
To: Jenny McPherson; Baird, Jim; Baker, Kathy; Barber, Heather; Barrar, Heather; Bass, Jean; Biddix, Wade; Boger, Fred;
Bowling, Jim; Boyd, David (DCR); Buck, Robins (VDACS); Burnam, Beth; Chieppa, Rachel M.; Cole, Taylor; Calvin, Karen;
Conner, Sharon; Crickenberger, Sam; Davis, Brandon; Davis, Trey; Dunaway, Diane; Dunn, Leigh; Edmonds, Ann; Farrell,
Robert W. (DOF); FitzSimmonds, Bob; Freeman, Honora; Friedman, Suzy; Goodall, Ches; Gunter, Neil (DCR); Harris,
Barry; Harris, Dave; Haskett, Mark; Hawkins, Erin; Henderson, Pete; Hollberg, Sara; Holm, Kathy; Homewood, George;
Hopewell, Andrew; Hunt, Robert; Johnson, Sue Ellen; Johnston, Chuck; Jones, Rebecca; Kane, Michael; Krusz, Blair;
Kurpiel, Patricia; Eric Lawrence; Le Duc, Kelli; Lee, Bob (VOF); Letchford, Stephen; Lott, Michael; McCarthy, John;
McCormack, Ted; McGarvey, Jason (VOF); McLellan, Eileen; Moody, Marion; Nunnally, David; O'Connell, Pat; Overton, Ed;
Parrish, Wanda; Patterson, Drew; Pickering, Ray; Potts, Lindsay; Pugh Johnson, Donna; Richardson, Jesse; Richardson,
Sarah (DCR); Rollison, Nan; Sandy, Steve; Santucci, Mike (DOF); Saphir, Mac; Scharedein, Bret; Shea, Jaleh; Short, Meg;
Smith, Rusty; Soles, Debra; Stidham, Brandon; Stith, Peter; Stone, Jeremy; Suydam, Robert (DOF); Swinson, Sherry;
Teetor, Alison; Terwilliger, David H. (DOF); Kris Tierney; Utz, Ray; Wagner, Bob; Wallace, Linda; Wells, Don; Woodward,
Mark; Wright, Justin; Wydner, III, Freddie
Subject: JLARC long-term land conservation report
Dear Local PDR Managers Group,
As we discussed at our meeting last week, I wanted to send around the information from the Joint Legislative Audit and
Review Commission (JLARC) study on long-term land conservation funding in Virginia. The report was received by the
Commission at their meeting on Monday, and authorized for printing. The draft version on the website should be
almost identical to the "final" version printed and posted in a few weeks. Lots of interesting analysis and information to
dig through here:
Fact Sheet:
htt
Ilarc.vir inia.
ov factsheets Fct429. df
Commission Draft:
http://ilarc.virginia.gov/Meetings/Septemberl2/Rpt429.pdf
Presentation:
http://ilarc.virginia.gov/Meetings/SeptemberIVRpt429brf.pdf
Thanks,
Kevin
Kevin Schmidt
Coordinator, Office of Farmland Preservation
Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
102 Governor Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Phone: (804) 786-1346
Fax: (804) 371-7786