Sec. 22-26jj. Acquisition of fee simple title to agricultural lands. Lease of property.
Sec. 22-26jj. Acquisition of fee simple title to agricultural lands. Lease of property. (a) The Commissioner of Agriculture, with the approval of the State Properties
Review Board, may acquire by purchase or accept as a gift, on behalf of the state, the
fee simple title of any agricultural real property and any personal property related to
such real property, including, but not limited to, machinery, equipment, fixtures and
livestock. The state conservation and development plan established pursuant to chapter
297 shall be used as an advisory document in connection with acquisition of such property. The commissioner, in deciding whether or not to acquire such property, shall consider all of the factors stated in section 22-26cc and shall further consider the likelihood
of subsequent sale of such property by the department for agricultural purposes, subject
to the state's retention of development rights. After a preliminary evaluation of such
factors, the Commissioner of Agriculture shall obtain and review one or more fee appraisals of the property in order to determine the value of such property. Each such
appraisal shall include an itemization of (1) the total value of the land, (2) the value of
the land as agricultural land, (3) the value of the development rights of the land, and (4)
the value of any related personal property proposed to be included in any sale. The
commissioner shall give notice of any such appraisal to the Departments of Transportation, Economic and Community Development and Environmental Protection and the
Office of Policy and Management. Any such appraisal may be obtained by the owner
of the property and, if performed in a manner approved by the commissioner, shall be
considered by the commissioner in making such determination. The commissioner may
purchase such property for a lesser price than any price suggested by any such appraisal
provided all considerations for acquisition specified in this subsection are taken into
account. In determining the value of the property, consideration shall be given to sales
of comparable properties in the general vicinity.
(b) After the acquisition of the fee simple title of any agricultural real property and
any related personal property, the commissioner shall sell such property, exclusive of
any development rights, for agricultural purposes as soon as practicable. The state shall
retain any development rights. The commissioner may lease or otherwise transfer, assign
or manage such property for agricultural, open space or other qualified purposes, in
accordance with subsection (d) of this section, until such time as a sale as required by
this section is completed.
(c) The commissioner may lease all or part of one property acquired by him under
this section as part of a demonstration project, in accordance with subsection (d) of this
section, provided such project is approved by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and
Management. Such property may be leased to one or more agricultural users for a period
not to exceed five years. Such lease may be renewed for periods not to exceed five years.
Any property leased under such demonstration project shall be exempt from taxation
by the municipality in which the property is located. The assessed valuation of the
property shall be included with the assessed valuation of state-owned land and buildings
for purposes of determining the state's grant in lieu of taxes under the provisions of
section 12-19a.
(d) No contract to sell, lease or otherwise transfer, assign or manage such property
for agricultural, open space or other qualified purposes shall be entered into by the
commissioner unless there has been a finding of the State Treasurer that such contract
will preserve the exclusion from federal taxation, if any, of the interest on the bonds of
the state issued to finance such acquisition. Any proceeds derived from any such contract
shall not be deemed revenues of the General Fund and shall be deposited in the appropriate bond proceeds account. Any such proceeds shall be applied, upon allotment
thereof, to acquisition of additional agricultural real property and related personal property or, upon approval of the State Bond Commission, for such other authorized capital
purposes which the State Treasurer finds will best assure the preservation of such exclusion from federal taxation, if any, including payment of the principal, redemption price,
if any, or interest on the bonds issued for the purchase of the agricultural property.
(May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-7, S. 15, 36; P.A. 93-150, S. 1, 2; P.A. 95-96; 95-250, S. 1; P.A. 96-211, S. 1, 5, 6; June 30 Sp.
Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(e); P.A. 04-189, S. 1; P.A. 05-228, S. 1; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 05-3, S. 113.)
History: P.A. 93-150 extended the commissioner's authority to acquire title to property under this section until July 1,
1995, effective June 11, 1993; P.A. 95-96 relettered former Subsec. (c) as (d) and inserted a new Subsec. (c) re lease of
property acquired under this section; P.A. 95-250 and P.A. 96-211 replaced Commissioner and Department of Economic
Development with Commissioner and Department of Economic and Community Development; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A.
03-6 replaced Commissioner of Agriculture with Commissioner 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; P.A. 05-228 amended Subsec. (a) by extending commissioner's authority to acquire title to property under section after July 1, 1995, and by making a technical change, effective
July 1, 2005; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 05-3 changed effective date of P.A. 05-228 to October 1, 2005, effective June 30, 2005.