Urban farmers soon could be getting a big property tax break, courtesy of a bill cruising through the Utah Legislature.
SB122 would allow small farmers in urban areas to be taxed just like their green-belt peers in rural Utah.
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Currently, farmers in urban areas must pay taxes for the "highest and best use" of the land, as if it were developed into business or residential property, according to sponsor Sen. Wayne Niederhauser, R - Sandy. The rules also offer the lower green-belt tax rate only to farms of 5 acres or more.
But if the bill passes, farms of 2 to 5 acres would qualify for the green-belt-level tax — so long as farmers meet certain production levels and prove they are selling food for a profit.
Niederhauser thinks the bill is necessary to protect open urban green space. He has seen several small-plot farmers in his east-side neighborhood forced to sell their property for development in recent years because they cannot turn a profit with the higher tax burden.
"If we can get an incentive for people to keep those [small parcels], it’s not just producing food," Niederhauser said. "It’s also a great benefit for their community, for them to see farming going on."
Many Utah kids grow up without understanding that the chicken on their dinner plate comes from an actual bird, and not from the grocery store, said Sterling Brown of the Utah Farm Bureau, which backs the bill.
"So many people today have grown up being removed from a farm or a ranch," Brown said. "They don’t clearly understand where their food and fiber come from."
Brown hopes the bill will continue the local food movement, allowing people from urban areas to eat fresh food, while providing a boost to the local economy.
And there is a market for homegrown goods. Brown points out that 10 years ago, the Wasatch Front had just two farmers markets. Today, that number has swelled to more than 30.
Local farmer Maryann Alston supports the bill, but hopes to see it amended to provide for even smaller farms in future years. Alston — who runs the Wasatch Front Farmers Market at Wheeler Farm and is opening a second market at Gardner Village later this year — was recently forced to sell a 1-acre Taylorsville plot that cost her $3,000 in property taxes each year. Lowering the taxes on even smaller for-profit farms would give farmers an incentive to keep growing, she believes.
"We have people on quarter-acre lots who are selling all year round," Alston said. "That seems like a growing trend. Not everyone can afford 2-plus acres."
The bill will likely pass as it is this session, but Niederhauser said he is open to running amendments next year. It already has passed the Senate and is wending its way through the House.
As written, the bill will only affect farmers in Salt Lake County. Lawmakers from Davis, Utah and Weber counties have expressed interest in having the program expanded, Niederhauser said. If the experiment goes well, the tax break could be opened to other farmers in the 2013 legislative session.
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