2005 Legislation
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HOUSE BILL NO. 215 – Property tax, agricultural land

HOUSE BILL NO. 215

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Bill Status



H0215...............................................by REVENUE AND TAXATION
PROPERTY TAX - Amends existing law to revise the definition for "land
actively devoted to agriculture" for property tax purposes; and to define
"for-profit."
                                                                        
02/14    House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/15    Rpt prt - to Rev/Tax
03/14    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/15    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/16    3rd rdg - PASSED - 69-0-1
      AYES -- Anderson, Andrus, Barraclough, Barrett, Bastian, Bayer,
      Bedke, Bell, Bilbao, Black, Block, Boe, Bolz, Bradford, Cannon,
      Chadderdon, Clark, Collins, Crow, Deal, Denney, Edmunson, Ellsworth,
      Eskridge, Field(18), Field(23), Garrett, Hart(Jacobson), Harwood,
      Henbest, Henderson, Jaquet, Jones, Kemp, Lake, LeFavour, Loertscher,
      Martinez, Mathews, McGeachin, McKague, Miller, Mitchell, Nielsen,
      Nonini, Pasley-Stuart, Pence, Raybould, Ring, Ringo, Roberts, Rusche,
      Rydalch, Sali, Sayler, Schaefer, Shepherd(2), Shepherd(8), Shirley,
      Skippen, Smith(30), Smith(24), Smylie, Snodgrass, Stevenson, Trail,
      Wills, Wood, Mr. Speaker
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Moyle
    Floor Sponsor - Barrett
    Title apvd - to Senate
03/17    Senate intro - 1st rdg - to Loc Gov
03/22    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/23    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/24    3rd rdg - PASSED - 34-0-0, 1 vacancy
      AYES -- Andreason, Brandt, Broadsword, Bunderson, Burkett,
      Burtenshaw, Cameron, Coiner, Compton, Corder, Darrington, Davis,
      Gannon, Geddes, Goedde, Hill, Jorgenson, Kelly, Keough, Langhorst,
      Little, Lodge, Malepeai, Marley, McGee, McKenzie, Pearce, Richardson,
      Schroeder, Stegner, Stennett, Sweet, Werk, Williams
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- (District 21 seat vacant)
    Floor Sponsor - Burtenshaw
    Title apvd - to House
03/24    To enrol
03/28    Rpt enrol - Sp signed
03/29    Pres signed
03/30    To Governor
04/05    Governor signed
         Session Law Chapter 271
         Effective: 01/01/05

Bill Text


                                                                        
                                                                        
  ]]]]              LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO             ]]]]
 Fifty-eighth Legislature                   First Regular Session - 2005
                                                                        
                                                                        
                              IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
                                                                        
                                     HOUSE BILL NO. 215
                                                                        
                             BY REVENUE AND TAXATION COMMITTEE
                                                                        
  1                                        AN ACT
  2    RELATING TO PROPERTY TAXATION; AMENDING SECTION 63-604, IDAHO CODE, TO  REVISE
  3        THE DEFINITION FOR "LAND ACTIVELY DEVOTED TO AGRICULTURE" FOR PROPERTY TAX
  4        PURPOSES,  TO MAKE GRAMMATICAL CHANGES AND TO DEFINE "FOR-PROFIT"; DECLAR-
  5        ING AN EMERGENCY AND PROVIDING FOR RETROACTIVE APPLICATION.
                                                                        
  6    Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
                                                                        
  7        SECTION 1.  That Section 63-604, Idaho Code, be, and the  same  is  hereby
  8    amended to read as follows:
                                                                        
  9        63-604.  LAND  ACTIVELY  DEVOTED  TO AGRICULTURE DEFINED. (1) For property
 10    tax purposes, land which is actively devoted to  agriculture  as  part  of  an
 11    agricultural  enterprise shall be eligible for appraisal, assessment and taxa-
 12    tion as agricultural property each year it meets one (1) or more of  the  fol-
 13    lowing qualifications:
 14        (a)  The  total  area  of  such land, including the homesite, is more than
 15        five (5) contiguous acres, and is actively devoted  to  agriculture  which
 16        means:
 17             (i)   It  is  used  to produce field crops including, but not limited
 18             to, grains, feed crops, fruits and vegetables; or
 19             (ii)  It is used to produce  nursery  stock  as  defined  in  section
 20             22-2302(11), Idaho Code; or
 21             (iii) It is used by the owner for the grazing of livestock to be sold
 22             as part of a net profit-making for-profit enterprise, or is leased by
 23             the owner to a bona fide lessee for grazing purposes; or
 24             (iv)  It is in a cropland retirement or rotation program.
 25        (b)  The  area  of such land is five (5) contiguous acres or less and such
 26        land has been actively devoted to agriculture within the meaning  of  sub-
 27        section  (1)(a) of this section during the last three (3) growing seasons;
 28        and
 29             (i)   It agriculturally produces for sale  or  home  consumption  the
 30             equivalent  of  fifteen  percent  (15%)  or  more  of  the owner's or
 31             lessee's annual gross income; or
 32             (ii)  It agriculturally produced gross revenues  in  the  immediately
 33             preceding  year  of  one  thousand dollars ($1,000) or more. When the
 34             area of land is five (5) contiguous acres or less, such land shall be
 35             presumed to be nonagricultural land until it is established that  the
 36             requirements of this subsection have been met.
 37        (2)  Land  shall not be classified or valued as agricultural land which is
 38    part of a platted subdivision with stated restrictions prohibiting its use for
 39    agricultural purposes, whether within or without a city.
 40        (3)  Land utilized for the grazing of a horse or other animals  kept  pri-
 41    marily for personal use or pleasure rather than as part of a bona fide profit-
 42    making  agricultural  for-profit enterprise shall not be considered to be land
 43    which is actively devoted to agriculture.
                                                                        
                                           2
                                                                        
  1        (4)  Land actively devoted to agriculture, having previously qualified for
  2    exemption under this section in the preceding year, or which would have quali-
  3    fied under this section during the current year, shall not lose such  qualifi-
  4    cation due to the owner's or lessee's absence in the current year by reason of
  5    active military service in a designated combat zone, as defined in section 112
  6    of  the Internal Revenue Code. If an owner fails to timely apply for exemption
  7    as required in this section solely by reason of active duty  in  a  designated
  8    combat  zone,  as defined in section 112 of the Internal Revenue Code, and the
  9    land would otherwise qualify for exemption under this section, then the  board
 10    of  county  commissioners  of the county in which the land actively devoted to
 11    agriculture is located shall refund property taxes, if previously paid, in  an
 12    amount equal to the exemption which would otherwise have applied.
 13        (5)  As used in this section:
 14        (a)  "C"contiguous"  shall means being in actual contact or touching along
 15        a boundary or at a point, except no area of land shall be  considered  not
 16        contiguous solely by reason of a roadway or other right-of-way; and
 17        (b)  "For-profit"  means  the  enterprise  will, over some period of time,
 18        make or attempt to make a return of income exceeding expenses.
                                                                        
 19        SECTION 2.  An emergency existing  therefor,  which  emergency  is  hereby
 20    declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after its
 21    passage and approval, and retroactively to January 1, 2005.

Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Impact



                       STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

                             RS 14897

This legislation clarifies that "land actively devoted to
agriculture" includes land that is leased for the grazing of
livestock.  The legislation also changes the term "net profit
making" enterprise to "for-profit" enterprise and provides a
definition of "for-profit."

An emergency clause is added in Section 2 and is retroactive to
January 1, 2005 to achieve consistent application for the tax year
of 2005.


                           FISCAL NOTE

There is no fiscal impact to the state or to the counties in the
collection of property taxes.




Contact
Name:  Rep JoAn Wood, Rep Lenore Barrett, and Sen Don Burtenshaw 
Phone: 332-1000


STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE                H 215