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4 <br />In September 2005, the General Assembly passed <br />House Bill 607 establishing the NC Agricultural <br />Development and Farmland Preservation Trust <br />Fund. The legislation also established a 19- member <br />Trust Fund Advisory Committee to advise the <br />Commissioner of Agriculture on the prioritization <br />and allocation of funds, the development of criteria <br />for awarding funds, program planning, and other <br />areas for the growth and development of family <br />farms in North Carolina. <br />How can the funds be used? <br />■ Fund public and private enterprise programs <br />that will promote profitable and sustainable <br />farms by assisting farmers in developing <br />and implementing plans for the production <br />of food, fiber and value -added products, <br />agritourism activities, marketing and sales <br />of agricultural products produced on the <br />farm, and other agriculture- related business <br />activities. <br />■ Fund farmland conservation agreements <br />targeted at the active production of food, fiber <br />and other agricultural products. <br />Support the purchase of agricultural <br />conservation easements, including <br />transaction costs. <br />Eligibility <br />Who is eligible to submit proposals? <br />-Any nonprofit conservation organization that <br />matches 30 percent of the Trust Fund monies it <br />receives with funds from sources other than the <br />NC Agricultural Development and Farmland <br />Preservation Trust Fund <br />All applicants must provide documentation of <br />membership or status. <br />Benefits <br />- Preserving North Carolina's Number 1 <br />Industry: North Carolina agricultural economy <br />is an over $68 billion business annually. The NC <br />ADFP Trust Fund plans to sustain this agricultural <br />economy by preserving the lands that produce <br />these products for our economy. The success of <br />the program will maintain farm family income <br />and retain /create agriculture- related jobs as <br />well as increase public awareness about the <br />importance of farm families to North Carolina's <br />economy. <br />- Countywide Economic Benefit: An American <br />Farmland Trust study showed that for every dollar <br />in taxes received from working land, governments <br />pay only 34 cents in services. However, services <br />paid to residential development are an average <br />of $1.15 per dollar of taxes received. Therefore <br />farmland is a net gain of revenue for the tax base <br />and thus an economic benefit for any county to <br />preserve working lands. <br />- Quality of Life: When farms are kept in <br />agriculture it maintains the quality of life that <br />each North Carolinian enjoys every day. Rural <br />working landscapes are an integral part of our <br />heritage and economy that must be preserved <br />for future generations. If we do not save our <br />agricultural areas we will destroy the rustic <br />landscapes that attract and retain people and <br />industry to North Carolina. <br />� +R <br />-An enterprise tier two or three county (G.S. 143B- <br />437.08) with a countywide farmland protection plan <br />shall match 15 percent of the Trust Fund monies <br />it receives with county funds. An enterprise tier <br />one county (G.S. 143B- 437.08) with a countywide <br />farmland protection plan will not be required to <br />match the Trust Fund monies it receives with county <br />funds. Any county without a countywide farmland <br />protection plan shall match 30 percent of the Trust <br />Fund monies it receives with county funds. <br />Additional Considerations: <br />Priorities of funds will be given to projects that <br />involve: <br />• Counties with Farm Protection Plans <br />• Goodness Grows farmers <br />• Enhanced Voluntary Agricultural District <br />farmers <br />• Voluntary Agricultural District farmers <br />• Farms with Farm Transition Plans <br />• Farms with Conservation Plans <br />• Farms with Forest Management Plans <br />• Limited - resource farmers <br />• Beginning farmers <br />• Groups and individuals with other <br />agricultural affiliations <br />All applicants must provide documentation of <br />membership or status. <br />Benefits <br />- Preserving North Carolina's Number 1 <br />Industry: North Carolina agricultural economy <br />is an over $68 billion business annually. The NC <br />ADFP Trust Fund plans to sustain this agricultural <br />economy by preserving the lands that produce <br />these products for our economy. The success of <br />the program will maintain farm family income <br />and retain /create agriculture- related jobs as <br />well as increase public awareness about the <br />importance of farm families to North Carolina's <br />economy. <br />- Countywide Economic Benefit: An American <br />Farmland Trust study showed that for every dollar <br />in taxes received from working land, governments <br />pay only 34 cents in services. However, services <br />paid to residential development are an average <br />of $1.15 per dollar of taxes received. Therefore <br />farmland is a net gain of revenue for the tax base <br />and thus an economic benefit for any county to <br />preserve working lands. <br />- Quality of Life: When farms are kept in <br />agriculture it maintains the quality of life that <br />each North Carolinian enjoys every day. Rural <br />working landscapes are an integral part of our <br />heritage and economy that must be preserved <br />for future generations. If we do not save our <br />agricultural areas we will destroy the rustic <br />landscapes that attract and retain people and <br />industry to North Carolina. <br />� +R <br />