Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation Carol S. West Executive Director Saturday, April 2, 2016

The Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation (MALPF): History Created in 1977 by the Maryland General Assembly as one of the first state farmland preservation programs in the country. Governed by the Agricultural Article, §§ through of the Annotated Code of Maryland as part of the Maryland Department of Agriculture. Over 36 years of purchasing easements (first easement purchased on October 11, 1980). State-County partnership program.

MALPF: Statutory Objective MALPF’s primary purpose is to preserve productive agricultural land and woodland in Maryland to provide for the continuing production of food and fiber for the citizens of Maryland. Easements are perpetual. Restrict land from Commercial, Residential and Industrial development.

MALPF: Operations Counties acquire, approve and rank easement applications. Counties also monitor and steward existing easements. Each county has a local appointed Agricultural Land Preservation Advisory Board. Governing structure is a 13 member Board of Trustees. 7 full time, 1 ½ time employees.

MALPF: Participation and Eligibility Landowner participation is voluntary. Property eligibility is based on three criteria: –Location – the property must be located outside of a ten-year water and sewer service area. In Tier III or IV. –Size – the property must be 50 acres or larger or, if smaller than 50 acres, be located contiguous to already preserved property. –Productive Soils – the property must have 50% or more USDA soils classification Class I, II, and/or III and/or Woodland Group 1 and/or 2.

MALPF: Participation and Eligibility cont’d Stewardship Requirements: –Soil conservation and water quality plan. –Nutrient management plan if one is required. –Forest stewardship plan. Plans must be kept updated. Inspect 10% per year (100% if Federal)

MALPF Sources of Funding Real Estate Transfer Taxes (RETT) (½ of 1% of the value of the transaction). MALPF receives 17.05% of this dedicated revenue source. Agricultural Transfer Taxes (3-5% of the value of the land, depending on size and improvements). Certified counties retain 75% and MALPF gets 25%. If not certified, counties retain 33% and MALPF gets 66%. MALPF’s Matching Funds Program and 100% County Funds. A portion of the RETT is used to match county funds (60/40 split). Counties can also supply additional funds for easements.

Fiscal Year PRIOR YEARS FUNDING FY 2015/2016 combined funding is about $38 million.

MALPF: Current Status In 36 years, MALPF has preserved almost 297,000 acres with 2,187 easements. Investment of nearly $662 million. On average, MALPF preserves about 8,300 acres per year. In many counties only 1 or 2 properties are preserved each year.

MARYLAND AGRICULTURAL LAND PRESERVATION FOUNDATION TOTAL EASEMENTS ACQUIRED (As of June 30, 2015) CountyTotal Easements AcquiredPERCENT OF TOTAL NumberAcreage Allegany % Anne Arundel415, % Baltimore22123, % Calvert354, % Caroline22232, % Carroll36443, % Cecil9914, % Charles487, % Dorchester8613, % Frederick12819, % Garrett546, % Harford13113, % Howard324, % Kent9417, % Montgomery314, % Prince George's181, % Queen Anne's16428, % St. Mary's11211, % Somerset455, % Talbot7511, % Washington7812, % Wicomico577, % Worcester446, % TOTALS2,187296, %

Recent Developments Funding levels have decreased due to the downturn in the housing market. Fair Market Values have declined. Easement values now restricted to maximum 75% of fmv. Septics Law may limit lot potential on agricultural properties.

Program Improvements: Better Use of State and County Resources Combined funding to secure more easements. At one time, all properties were selected by discount. Properties now ranked by the county for their quality (soils, size, and location). Counties are adopting discounting and/or caps to make dollars go further. Priority Preservation Areas in Certified Counties.

GreenPrint Operated through DNR. Target lands and watersheds of high ecological value that have been identified as conservation priorities by the DNR. MALPF holds : –56 GreenPrint easements –Almost 9,000 acres –Cost $13 million

Rural Legacy Operated through DNR. Preserve large, contiguous tracts of land to enhance natural resource, agricultural, forestry and environmental protection while supporting a sustainable land base for natural resource based industries. MALPF Co-Holds : –23 Rural Legacy easements –Over 1,200 acres –Cost $2.4 million

Allowable Uses Since 2007, landowners can request permission for: Wind turbines and solar panels for on-farm use Bed and Breakfast Creamery Winery Landscape Operation Petting Zoo Agri-tourism 2014 Legislation – Commercial Renewable Energy – solar, wind, anaerobic digestion of chicken and livestock manure

Overlay Easements Wetland Restoration Wetland Mitigation Forest Mitigation CREP Contracts/Easements Environmental Easements Stream Buffers Stream Restoration

Challenges Lack of Funding Sea Level Rise Pressure for Commercial Uses –Ex. Frequent non-ag events Violations 25 year termination potential

Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation