AB 715

Under the Managed Forest Land (MFL) Program administered by the

Department of Natural Resources, the owner of a parcel of land designated as MFL

makes an annual acreage share payment that is lower than, and in lieu of, the

property taxes that normally would be payable on the land. In exchange, the owner

must comply with certain forestry practices. The owner may keep a specific area

closed to public access and the remainder of the MFL must be kept open for

recreational activities, such as hunting, fishing, and cross-country skiing. For MFL

that is closed to the public, the MFL owner must make an additional payment.

Current law imposes size limits on the area that may be closed and one of these limits

is a maximum of 160 acres in a single town, city, or village.

Under this bill, an MFL owner may not close a specific area even if it is 160 acres

or less in a single town, city, or village if the specific area of land was, on January 1,

2009, part of a parcel under single ownership that exceeded 1,000 acres in size and

that was not subject to a MFL order or to a contract under the forest cropland or

woodland tax laws.