2002 Legislation
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HOUSE BILL NO. 418 – Forest lands, private, assessment

HOUSE BILL NO. 418

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Daily Data Tracking History



H0418........................................................by MR. SPEAKER
                     Requested by: Department of Lands
FOREST LANDS - ASSESSMENT - Amends existing law to increase the maximum
cost of patrol and protection provided by the director of the Department of
Lands for private owners of forest lands; and to increase the amount
assessed for certain privately owned forest land to defray costs associated
with fire suppression.
                                                                        
01/07    House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
    Rpt prt - to Res/Con

Bill Text


                                                                        
  ||||              LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO             ||||
 Fifty-sixth Legislature                  Second Regular Session - 2002
                                                                        
                                                                        
                              IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
                                                                        
                                     HOUSE BILL NO. 418
                                                                        
                                       BY MR. SPEAKER
                             Requested by: Department of Lands
                                                                        
  1                                        AN ACT
  2    RELATING TO  FOREST  PROTECTION;  AMENDING  SECTION  38-111,  IDAHO  CODE,  TO
  3        INCREASE  THE MAXIMUM COST OF PATROL AND PROTECTION PROVIDED BY THE DIREC-
  4        TOR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF LANDS FOR CERTAIN PRIVATE OWNERS, AND TO INCREASE
  5        THE SURCHARGE LEVIED AND ASSESSED FOR CERTAIN LAND TO DEFRAY COSTS ASSOCI-
  6        ATED WITH FIRE SUPPRESSION.
                                                                        
  7    Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
                                                                        
  8        SECTION 1.  That Section 38-111, Idaho Code, be, and the  same  is  hereby
  9    amended to read as follows:
                                                                        
 10        38-111.  PROTECTION  BY  OWNER -- ASSESSMENTS -- BUDGET OF PROTECTIVE DIS-
 11    TRICTS. Every owner of forest lands in the  state  shall  furnish  or  provide
 12    therefor, throughout the closed season, protection against the starting, exis-
 13    tence  or spread of fires thereon, or therefrom, in conformity with reasonable
 14    rules and standards for adequate protection, to be established  by  the  state
 15    board  of land commissioners. An owner of forest lands who maintains a member-
 16    ship in good standing in  a  forest  protective  association  operating  under
 17    agreement  with the state board of land commissioners, which association main-
 18    tains a standard of protection approved by said board and who pays the assess-
 19    ments to the association in the amounts required in  this  section,  shall  be
 20    deemed  to  have fully complied herewith. In the event the owner of any forest
 21    land shall neglect or fail to furnish the protection required in this section,
 22    the director of the department of lands shall provide such patrol and  protec-
 23    tion  therefor at actual cost to the owner of forest lands. For private owners
 24    of forest lands whose total acres of forest lands are twenty-six (26) acres or
 25    more, this cost shall not exceed forty-five sixty cents (4560)  an  acre  per
 26    year. For private owners of forest lands whose total acres of forest lands are
 27    twenty-five  (25)  acres  or  fewer,  the minimum assessment per year shall be
 28    equal to the per acre cost multiplied by twenty-five (25).
 29        In addition to any other assessment prescribed in  this  chapter,  a  sur-
 30    charge  shall  be  levied  and  assessed  in  the amount of ten twenty dollars
 31    ($120.00) for each improved lot or parcel, to defray the cost of fire suppres-
 32    sion on forest land caused by the existence of the improvements.
 33        In the event an assessment is made in an  amount  less  than  the  maximum
 34    hereinbefore provided, and an actual loss occurs which exceeds the amount bud-
 35    geted and for which assessments have been made, the director of the department
 36    of lands, with the approval of the board, may require an additional assessment
 37    to  be  made  and  paid, which together with the original assessment shall not
 38    exceed the maximum assessment set  forth  in  this  section.  Such  additional
 39    assessment shall be levied and collected in the same manner as herein provided
 40    for  the  collection  of  such original assessments. The liability provided in
 41    this section shall be calculated for each forest protection district or  asso-
 42    ciation separately, and shall be calculated solely upon the charges assignable
 43    to  fire  control  or presuppression of fires within each district or associa-
                                                                        
                                           2
                                                                        
  1    tion.
  2        Each forest protective association actively engaged in  forest  protection
  3    under  agreement  with  the  state board of land commissioners shall each year
  4    prepare in detail, a budget of all estimated operating costs for the next cal-
  5    endar year and shall submit this budget to the board for approval before  June
  6    30 of the current year.
  7        Except  for  the  provisions  of  section 38-122, Idaho Code, and cases of
  8    proven negligence by the landowner or his agent, no other charges  or  assess-
  9    ments  for  fire  protection shall be made or assessed or collected from those
 10    forest landowners participating as provided herein.

Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Impact


                          STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

                                RS 11442

Previously, the legislature has attempted to establish forest 
protection landowner assessments so that landowners were funding 
approximately 50% of the preparedness costs.  The current cost of 
fire preparedness is about $1.08/acre.  The proposed legislation 
amends Section 38-111, Idaho Code, to increase the landowner 
assessment for forest protection from $0.45/acre to $0.60/acre, and 
the improved lot or parcel surcharge from $10.00 to $20.00, which 
will restore the landowner share of preparedness to about 50% for the 
next few years.
                               FISCAL IMPACT

Revenues from forest landowner assessments will increase from about 
$2,000,000 to $2,825,000 per year.  These monies are deposited in the 
forest protection dedicated account and utilized to defray wildland 
fire preparedness costs. 

CONTACT
Name:     Winston Wiggins
Agency:   Lands, Dept of
Phone:    334-0238

Statement of Purpose/Fiscal Impact                     H0418