APB agenda 032101 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

March 2001 farmland preservation report Md. lot exclusions, continued from page 2 Maryland Farm Bureau president Steve Weber said he needed more time to review the proposal, but so far he is "very uncomfortable" with it. "It seems like you're almost guaranteeing a sale ... I'm not sure what the impact will be." Weber said the Maryland Farm Bureau, noted for its lukewarm support of the farmland program since its inception, is "trying to make it a higher priority. We want to build the case for bumping up ag preservation." According to Weber, farm bureau membership is now "60 to 70 percent preservation people. The agricultural community is shifting. We want to build something for the long - term.'' Contact: Paul Scheidt, 410 841 -5860, Wally Lippincott, 410 887 -4488 x 241; Tim Blaser, 301694- 2513; Donna Mennitto, 410461 -4534; Steve Weber, 410 922 -3426. OREGON Voter - approved Measure 7 ruled unconstitutional continued from page 1 issues or aspects of an issue. Lipscomb wrote, "several of the provisions of Ballot Measure 7 do not appear to be 'closely related' in that a voter's support of one provision does not necessarily imply support for any of the others." The decision was based on recent rulings by the Oregon Supreme Court and the Oregon Court of Appeals. "The requirement that a ballot -measure fully explain all the changes it makes to,the Oregon Constitution and the prohibition against bundling together multiple Constitutional amendments in one ballot measure are fundamental protections to voters in our initiative system.7hese protections are especially important in a case like this ..." Lipscomb wrote. The ruling came following a lawsuit brought by Audrey McCall, widow of former Governor Page 3 Tom McCall, a Republican who helped found 1000 Friends of Oregon in 1975 to protect the longevity of Senate Bill 100, the state's land use planning law he shepherded through the legislature in 1973. Hector Macpherson, a retired farmer who helped draft and pass Senate Bill 100 joined in the suit, along with the mayors of Salem and Jackson- ville and a Union County rancher and lawyer. The plaintiffs were represented pro bono by an attor- ney at the request of 1.000 Friends. According to observers, the new law could have bankrupted state agencies and local govern- ments with landowner claims it would have allowed. According to Oregon land use expert Mitch Rohse, the effect of Measure 7 would have been "even worse than we thought," based on analysis in Judge Lipscomb's decision. "First, its application to regulations that restrict the use of land applies more broadly than most folks expected," Rohse said, noting that the law probably would have affected even the state's recycling law because supermarkets could have filed for compensation for being required to maintain recycling operations on their property. Rohse also believes that if the legislature did not appropriate funds to a state agency specifi- cally to pay compensation claims, that agency would still be obligated to pay claims. "The Department of Land Conservation and Development, for example, has a budget of about $16 million per biennium. So, if the agency re- ceived claims for, say, $20 million, it Would have to suspend all discretional actions — such as enforcing the state's planning laws — pay as many of the claims as it could, up to $16 million, and essentially close its doors until the next bien- nium. According to Rohse, House Republicans will likely draft new legislation that will put the issue before the voters again in November 2002, with more careful language. "The Senate will hang back and see how that's please turn to page 4