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farmland preservation Covering the policies, practices and initiatives that save farmland report Since 1990 - Deborah Bowers, Editor NATION'S TOP 12 COUNTY PROGRAMS Top 12 preserve over half million acres A nationwide survey of counties with funded farmland preservation programs conducted this month by Farmland Preservation Report has found that the top - ranking programs have placed under permanent protection more than a half million acres, and have more than $98 million to spend. All the counties in the ranking have strong political and financial commitments to land preserva- tion. Many operate highly progressive programs that are rare nationally. Some continue to initiate innova- tions to boost their efforts. All but two of the counties are in the Mid- Atla,1.tic. The nation's best known transfer of development rights (TDR) program in Montgomery County, Md. once again puts that county on top for number of DEVELOPER FILES $12 MILLION CLAIM agricultural acres permanently protected from devel- opment. Lancaster County, Pa., however, leads the nation in number of ag acres preserved through the purchase of development rights, but is listed second in the survey, which ranks counties by number of acres Top counties table, page 3 preserved in multiple agricultural land programs. The third spot in the annual ranking, goes once again to Chester County, Pa., where the acreage tally is substantially boosted by easement donations to the Brandywine Conservancy. According to director Kevin Baer, the county will have a program initiative to announce by this fall. Continued on page 2 Virginia reviewing tax credit claims RICHMOND, VA— Some income tax credit claims made under a 1999 conservation tax incentive law are under review by the Virginia Department of Taxation, according to Bob Schultze, executive commissioner for customer relations. The tax credit allows up to 50 percent of the value of an easement donation to be claimed against the state income tax. The legislature made the credits substantially more valuable two years ago by allowing credits that could not be used due to time constraints in the law to be sold to other taxpayers. According to Estie Thomas of the Virginia Outdoors Foundation, a state - funded nonprofit, the department is "looking at over - inflated appraisals." According to Paul Gilbert, executive director of the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust, a tax credit claim of $12 million has been filed by a developer on a riparian buffer easement that was a condition of a permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Under state law, a conservation gift "is not something proffered for a building permit," Gilbert said about the claim by the Silver Companies, whose conserved property is part of a 2,400 -acre commercial project in Stafford County and in Fredericksburg. "Silver Companies is in compliance with the Army Continued on page 6 VOLUME 14, NUMBER 9 • JULY -AUG 2004 Top counties table - p. 3 Farmland on agenda in Canada - p. 4 Michigan House passes ag districts - p. 5 Spotlight: Lee Koppelman, part two - p. 6 Jobs digest /Conferences - p. 8, - f