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Page 6 farmland preservation report April 2003 Compensation issues, new Nevus briefs... ideas, focus of California In Maryland ••. For legislative and conference budget news, see story, page 1. Howard County has lured Joy Levy as its new farmland preservation ' SACRAMENTO, CA - "These are exciting ideas that have a lot of administrator, filling the vacancy currency," said Larry Libby of Ohio State University, summing up a left by Jeff Everett last November. two -day workshop convened by the University of California's Levy was most recently a project manager with the state's Rural Agricultural Issues Center, April 14 -15. The conference addressed Legacy Program prior to that she compensatory options for agricultural easement programs. managed the Queen Anne's County Conference chair Alvin D. Sokolow, policy specialist for coop- farmland preservation program for erative extension at UC Davis, said the invitational brought together four years. "1'm very excited and about 80 people in farmland preservation, all but 20 from California. glad to be back at the county level," About 12 experts from eastern states were asked to present she said. Even though the Rural Legacy papers on issues and techniques, and a number of California farmers proms wfli l have just $5 million and ranchers related experiences with easement negotiations. to award to $95.4 million in requests, the program will use its Public - private tradeoffs in buying easements normal procedure to make awards in the current round, according to Public- private tradeoffs in paying landowners to retire develop- program director Pam Bush. ment potential was addressed in ati.early session. The requests come from 21 Patricia Norris, an associate professor in agricultural economics existing Rural Legacy Areas and and resource development at Michigan State University said she and four applicants asking for new area a colleague were examining how to target farmland for preservation designations in Carroll, Calvert, St. Mary's and Frederick Counties. The in urbanizing states. Public support of farmland protection could be program, in operation since 1998, put to the test when criteria for selection of farms includes "aspects had recent funding levels of vulnerable to change," such as acceptable farm operations. For between $21 and $29 million. example, converting open land to greenhouses, is "not going to be In California ... The Assembly what people had in mind as farmland and open space protection." Budget Subcommittee has placed the annual $39 million in J. Dixon Esseks, emeritus professor of public administration at .. Williamson Act subventions on a Northern Illinois University, made the case for large lot zoning to list of programs it wants restored in protect agriculture, as opposed to huge public investment in ease - the governor's budget. The ments. His research is "about quantifying land conservation" in terms of "user beneficiaries." He said large lot zoning "unfortunately Williamson Act reimburses counties for property tax breaks for farmland under development pays for itself." restrictions of at least 10 years. The "We can frame the question even if we can't place a dollar value program protects 15 million acres. on a supposed benefit," Esseks said. The more recent Farmland Security Ted Feitshans, who teaches agricultural and environmental law Zone program, which provides at North Carolina State University, said that in a state in which half additional benefits for longer term of counties have no comprehensive plans, "use value assessment is restrictions, is now protecting 564,700 acres in 14 counties. an underrated benefit," that helps to protect farmland. At the same In Pennsylvania... HB 671 would time, such.laws can be abused by developers, as was recently head - make optional to counties a lined in a state newspaper, he said. reduction from 50 to 25 acres the eligible size of a farm for easement Continued on page 7 sale. HB 668 would change