Sec. 22-26bb. Definitions.
Sec. 22-26bb. Definitions. As used in this chapter:
(a) "Agricultural land" means any land in the state suitable by reference to soil
types, existing and past use of such land for agricultural purposes and other relevant
factors for the cultivation of plants for production of human food and fiber or production
of other useful and valuable plant products and for the production of animals, livestock
and poultry useful to man and the environment, and land capable of providing economically profitable farm units, and may include adjacent pastures, wooded land, natural
drainage areas and other adjacent open areas;
(b) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Agriculture;
(c) "Department" means the Department of Agriculture;
(d) "Development rights" means the rights of the fee simple owner of agricultural
land to develop, construct on, sell, lease or otherwise improve the agricultural land for
uses that result in rendering such land no longer agricultural land, but shall not be construed to include: (1) The uses defined in subsection (q) of section 1-1, (2) the rights of
the fee owner of agricultural land to develop, construct on, sell, give or transfer in any
way the property in its entirety, lease the property for a term of less than twenty-five
years or otherwise improve the agricultural land to preserve, maintain, operate or continue such land as agricultural land, including but not limited to construction thereon
of residences for persons directly incidental to farm operation and buildings for animals,
roadside stands and farm markets for sale to the consumer of food products and ornamental plants, facilities for the storing of equipment and products or processing thereof or
such other improvements, activities and uses thereon as may be directly or incidentally
related to the operation of the agricultural enterprise, as long as the acreage and productivity of arable land for crops is not materially decreased and due consideration is given
to the impact of any decrease in acreage or productivity of such arable land upon the
total farm operation, except that new construction or modification of an existing farm
building necessary to the operation of a farm on prime farmland, as defined by the United
States Department of Agriculture, of which the state has purchased development rights
shall be limited to not more than five per cent of the total of such prime farmland, (3)
the rights of the fee owner to provide for the extraction of gravel or like natural elements
to be used on the farm for purposes directly or incidentally related to the operation of
the agricultural enterprise or (4) the existing water and mineral rights, exclusive of
gravel, of the fee owner;
(e) "Owner" means any person, corporation, limited liability company, partnership,
trust, municipal corporation, public utility or any other private or public entity that shall
be the fee simple owner of agricultural land or who shall by operation of law have the
power to exercise the rights of a fee simple owner;
(f) "Municipality" means any city, town, borough, district, or association with municipal powers;
(g) "Prime farmland" means soils defined by the United States Department of Agriculture as the best suited to producing food, feed, forage, fiber and oilseed crops;
(h) "Restricted agricultural land" means land and the improvements thereon for
which development rights are held by the state of Connecticut;
(i) "Restriction" means the encumbrance on development uses placed on restricted
lands as a result of the acquisition of development rights by the state of Connecticut;
(j) "Residences" means single-family residential dwellings and any associated on-site septic disposal system or potable well;
(k) "Building" means (1) any permanent structure used for holding animals, (2)
roadside stands and farm markets for sale to the consumer of food products and ornamental plants, (3) facilities for the storing of equipment and products or the processing of
products, and (4) animal waste storage facilities;
(l) "Arable land" means land currently used for the production of crops or pasture
and land considered prime and important farmland soil by the United States Department
of Agriculture;
(m) "Gravel or like natural elements" means rounded or angular fragments of rock
and associated soil material;
(n) "Economically profitable farm unit" means an acreage of arable land capable
of producing a sustained annual gross income of significant value as determined by the
commissioner;
(o) "The property in its entirety" means the entire acreage of restricted land without
division or subdivision;
(p) "Persons directly incidental to the farm operation" means any person who participates in the farm operation on the restricted land on a full-time basis and any owner of
the restricted land regardless of whether or not he participates in the farm operation on
a full-time basis.
(P.A. 78-232, S. 2, 11; P.A. 81-151, S. 2, 3; P.A. 82-173, S. 1, 2; 82-472, S. 97, 183; P.A. 88-75, S. 1, 3; P.A. 89-226,
S. 2, 6; P.A. 95-79, S. 82, 189; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(e), (f); P.A. 04-189, S. 1.)
History: P.A. 81-151 amended Subdiv. (d) so that development rights by definition preclude development that would
materially decrease acreage and productivity and is restricted to 5% of prime farmland; P.A. 82-173 amended the definition
of development rights to exclude the right of an owner to sell anything but the entire property, thereby prohibiting subdivision
by sale; P.A. 82-472 made a technical correction in Subdiv. (d); P.A. 88-75 redefined "development rights" to specifically
exclude owner's right to "give or transfer" property in its entirety or to lease property for less than twenty-five-year term
and to extract gravel etc. "to be used on the farm" and added Subdivs. (f) to (o) defining "municipality", "prime farmland",
"restricted agricultural land", "restriction", "residences", "building", "arable land", "gravel or like natural elements",
"economically profitable farm unit" and "the property in its entirety"; P.A. 89-226 added Subsec. (p) defining "persons
directly incidental to the farm operation"; P.A. 95-79 redefined "owner" to include a limited liability company, effective
May 31, 1995; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 replaced Commissioner and Department of Agriculture with Commissioner
and Department of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June
30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective
June 1, 2004.
Subdiv. (a):
Cited. 212 C. 727.
Subdiv. (e):
Cited. 194 C. 129.