AB 574

Under current law, the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer

Protection (DATCP) administers the Farmland Preservation Program, which

contains some of the requirements that a farmer must meet to qualify for the

farmland preservation tax credit. Under current law, one requirement for qualifying

for the farmland preservation tax credit is that the farmland must either be in a

farmland preservation zoning district under a certified farmland preservation

zoning ordinance or be covered by a farmland preservation agreement entered into

by DATCP and the farmer.

Current law prohibits DATCP from entering into a farmland preservation

agreement with a farmer unless the farmer's land is in an agricultural enterprise

area designated by DATCP. DATCP may not designate an area as an agricultural

enterprise area unless it receives a petition from local government units and at least

five farmers with land in the area. Current law prohibits DATCP from designating

agricultural enterprise areas with a combined area of more than 1,000,000 acres.

This bill increases the cap on the combined area of agricultural enterprise areas

from 1,000,000 to 2,000,000 acres.