Hilltown Land Trust
Dedicated to preserving active farmland and other working properties,
saving native plant and wildlife habitats, protecting watersheds,
and preserving the scenic and rural character of the
Hilltowns of Western Massachusetts
Tax Incentive for Local Land Conservation Renewed
Private landowners—and especially family farmers and ranchers—are
the beneficiaries of a newly passed federal tax incentive for conservation.
The incentive, which had expired at the end of 2007, was recently renewed
in the Federal Farm Bill.
The incentive, which applies to a landowner’s federal income tax, will:
- Raise the deduction a donor can take for donating a voluntary conservation restriction from 30% of their income in any year to 50%;
- Allow farmers and ranchers to deduct up to 100% of their income; and
- Increase the number of years over which a donor can take deductions from 6 to 16 years.
Landowners now have until December 31, 2009 to take advantage of these benefits.
But the new law is temporary. Unless renewed, 2010 easements will revert
to a much lower level of tax benefits.
The incentive makes it more economically feasible for thousands of farmers,
ranchers and other landowners of modest means to conserve their land and keep
it in agricultural production. Voluntary conservation agreements, also known
as conservation restrictions or easements, can protect working farms and ranches
and make it easier for families to leave the land to the next generation.
For more information, contact us, visit the Land Trust Alliance at www.lta.org, or contact your tax professional.
Click here for information about joining the Hilltown Land Trust