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Published Monday, September 22, 2008 in Local

Proposed amendment would protect large forested tracts

By Amy Lott

The Times-Herald

The first Georgia Constitutional Amendment appearing on local ballots this election season is the Georgia Forest Land Protection Act, aimed at encouraging preservation of Georgia forests through a conservation use property tax reduction program.

Directing the General Assembly to provide for a new method of ad valorem tax assessment of forest land conservation use property, this proposal would include only tracts of forest land which exceed 200 acres, according to the Secretary of State's web site, although exceptions may occur under some circumstances.

The amendment would essentially allow owners of large forest tracks the same tax benefits that smaller land owners now receive under the "conservation use" program. Conservation use is currently limited to tracts under 2,000 acres.

Subject to certain qualifications, an owner of such property would be able to enter into a covenant to restrict the use of the land to current use, a Secretary of State release said. The land would then be taxed according to a formula based on current use, annual productivity and real property sales data. A breach of the covenant would result in government recapturing the tax savings and may result in other appropriate penalties.

According to the Georgia Forestry Commission Web site, "Intact forest lands supply a variety of resources -- timber products, wildlife habitat, soil and watershed protection, aesthetics and recreational opportunities. When forests become fragmented or disappear, so do the irreplaceable benefits they provide... As urbanization spreads, it is becoming increasingly difficult to conserve our vital forest lands."

Information from the Forestry Commission indicated that if the Amendment were approved, landowners would receive a lower property tax rate on their forests in return for agreeing to keep the land in a complying use. If the Amendment caused the total county revenue to be reduced by 3 percent or less, it would be reimbursed by half.

"[The Georgia Forest Land Protection Act] provides permanent protection to large, contiguous tracts of forest land in order to sustain Georgia's clean water, clean air and wildlife habitat," according to a release from the Georgia Forestry Commission.