Two state lawmakers are backing the Town of Bethlehem’s plan to allow conservation easements for landowners.
State Sen. Neil Breslin and Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy in mid-May introduced legislation that would allow the town to grant tax exemptions on open space. The idea was first discussed in February as a possible goal for the Bethlehem’s new Open Space Technical Advisory group. Others discussed interest in having such an exemption during the recent reassessment processes as another way to provide tax relief.
“We’re optimistic that the bill will pass,” said Supervisor John Clarkson. “We want to help our residents in any way we can, but only landowners who wish to participate would have to do so.”
Landowners could see an exemption of 50 to 90 percent on their general municipal and school district taxes by participating in the program, according to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.
The exemption would mainly be based on how long they committed their land to remain open space, with the shortest amount of time being 15 years. No development can occur on the land during the easement’s timeframe.
The town’s Open Space Technical Advisory group is discussing the guidelines for Bethlehem’s program. Clarkson said the first step is to get the bill passed in the legislature to make sure the exemption is legal.
“The benefits of preserving open space are numerous, but so often communities have a difficult time preserving undeveloped lands and conserving open space. Towns just don’t have enough funds available for preservation of such lands,” said Breslin in a statement. “Creating an open space tax exemption can be a vital tool for land preservation and doesn’t require the appropriation of any new funds.”
Fahy said the program would help the town promote open space preservation in “a fair manner,” while calling Bethlehem a “model community for land-use planning.”
A local law would need to be approved by the town for the exemption to take effect in the future.
In early May, Planning Director Rob Leslie presented the Bethlehem Town Board with examples of conservation easements in other municipalities across the state and how one could be implemented in Bethlehem.
Depending on the amount of acreage approved to qualify for an easement, 157 parcels of land were identified in the town as “possible participants” in the program. Land already receiving an agricultural exemption would likely not qualify.
During the presentation, Councilman Jeffrey Kuhn asked if a participating landowner would be in violation of the easement agreement if they began planning to sell or develop the land before the timeframe was up.
Leslie said it was those details that would need to be worked out before the law was passed, but it would be unlikely the landowners would be in violation if no actual development took place. He also suggested a tax clawback be set into the law, so a landowner could sell or develop the land if they wished. However, they would then need to pay the back taxes on the property.
Clarkson said the bill is now before the Committee on Real Property Taxation. The hope is for the program to be in place for the 2015 town and county tax billing cycle.