Tax Credit Policy
The Coalition Partners initiated a review of policy alternatives in 2006. To date, four subject areas were reviewed and evaluated for their practical potential to deter conversion of working lands:
- A ballot initiative to fund conservation activities through a statewide bond.
- A transferable state income tax credit for charitable conservation donations of voluntary landowner agreements.
- Transfer of development rights (TDR’s), and
- Payments for landowner provision of ecosystem services, e.g. habitat improvement projects.
The policy review concluded that states with state income tax credits protected substantial acres of working lands from conversion. Twelve states adopted this strategy, with varying parameters to manage the scale of the program.
Green - States with Policy; Yellow - States Considering Policy
The Conservation Resource Center published a comprehensive review of the 12 states with tax credit policies (2007): State Conservation Tax Credits: Impact and Analysis. The Partners designed the structure of an Idaho Tax Credit Policy in the Idaho Ranch, Farm and Forest Protection Act presented to the House Revenue and Taxation Committee during the 2008 Legislative Session.
