A successful, 1965 California farm and ranch land conservation tax mechanism is under threat by Gov. Brown of dissolution due to the $25 billion deficit. If dissolved, individual counties would have to determine to keep the tax program going.
As Gabriel Metcalf of SPUR noted, dissolving both the Williamson Act and redevelopment agencies could compount the likelihood of exacerbating sprawl development, as tax incentives for urban development would be removed just as tax incentives for keeping farmland as farmland are eliminated.
"The rules are simple. Counties provide the property tax breaks, which can range from 20 percent to 75 percent, depending on the age and location of each ranch or farm. The state historically gave counties back some of that money -- about $35 million"
"This is the only issue where the Sierra Club and the Farm Bureau and the Cattlemen's Association are saying the same thing," said a Livermore rancher.
KQED's Quest goes to a Yolo County outside Sacramento to tour a 7500-acre Black Angus cattle ranch to learn more about the Williamson Act. Listen to the 6-minute Audio Report: Land Preservation on the Chopping Block. The rancher states that most ranchers couldn't afford to pay the full taxes on their land when it takes "40 acres to raise one cow/calf pair".
Thanks to California League of Conservation Voters
Read the full story: Cows or condos? California's leading farmland preservation program faces the ax amid budget woes
Baltimore Grants Affordable Housing Developer 30-Year Tax Break
Some housing advocates say the $16.5 million deal’s 10% affordable housing requirement is insufficient and that incentives shouldn’t be given out on a case by case basis.
How Effective are Philadelphia’s Keystone Opportunity Zones?
The impacts of a tax break designed to create jobs, stimulate development, and reduce blight are proving hard to track.
Houston Mayor Rebukes Housing Authority on Tax Break Deals
The mayor sternly denounced the city’s housing authority for going forward with tax break deals that critics say don’t bring enough new affordable housing to the city and reduce tax revenue for local schools and utilities.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
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Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Los Angeles just elected an urban planner as its mayor
Transportation analysts are optimistic that Raman will be more aggressive in addressing transit issues than Bass.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority