59-2-503 - Qualifications for agricultural use assessment.
59-2-503. Qualifications for agricultural use assessment.
(1) For general property tax purposes, land may be assessed on the basis of the value thatthe land has for agricultural use if the land:
(a) is not less than five contiguous acres in area, except that land may be assessed on thebasis of the value that the land has for agricultural use:
(i) if:
(A) the land is devoted to agricultural use in conjunction with other eligible acreage; and
(B) the land and the other eligible acreage described in Subsection (1)(a)(i)(A) haveidentical legal ownership; or
(ii) as provided under Subsection (4); and
(b) except as provided in Subsection (5):
(i) is actively devoted to agricultural use; and
(ii) has been actively devoted to agricultural use for at least two successive yearsimmediately preceding the tax year for which the land is being assessed under this part.
(2) In determining whether land is actively devoted to agricultural use, production peracre for a given county or area and a given type of land shall be determined by using the firstapplicable of the following:
(a) production levels reported in the current publication of the Utah AgriculturalStatistics;
(b) current crop budgets developed and published by Utah State University; and
(c) other acceptable standards of agricultural production designated by the commissionby rule adopted in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act.
(3) Land may be assessed on the basis of the land's agricultural value if the land:
(a) is subject to the privilege tax imposed by Section 59-4-101;
(b) is owned by the state or any of the state's political subdivisions; and
(c) meets the requirements of Subsection (1).
(4) Notwithstanding Subsection (1)(a), the commission or a county board of equalizationmay grant a waiver of the acreage limitation for land upon:
(a) appeal by the owner; and
(b) submission of proof that:
(i) 80% or more of the owner's, purchaser's, or lessee's income is derived fromagricultural products produced on the property in question; or
(ii) (A) the failure to meet the acreage requirement arose solely as a result of anacquisition by a governmental entity by:
(I) eminent domain; or
(II) the threat or imminence of an eminent domain proceeding;
(B) the land is actively devoted to agricultural use; and
(C) no change occurs in the ownership of the land.
(5) (a) Notwithstanding Subsection (1)(b), the commission or a county board ofequalization may grant a waiver of the requirement that the land is actively devoted toagricultural use for the tax year for which the land is being assessed under this part upon:
(i) appeal by the owner; and
(ii) submission of proof that:
(A) the land was assessed on the basis of agricultural use for at least two yearsimmediately preceding that tax year; and
(B) the failure to meet the agricultural production requirements for that tax year was dueto no fault or act of the owner, purchaser, or lessee.
(b) As used in Subsection (5)(a), "fault" does not include:
(i) intentional planting of crops or trees which, because of the maturation period, do notgive the owner, purchaser, or lessee a reasonable opportunity to satisfy the production levelsrequired for land actively devoted to agricultural use; or
(ii) implementation of a bona fide range improvement program, crop rotation program, orother similar accepted cultural practices which do not give the owner, purchaser, or lessee areasonable opportunity to satisfy the production levels required for land actively devoted toagricultural use.
(6) Land that otherwise qualifies under Subsection (1) to be assessed on the basis of thevalue that the land has for agricultural use does not lose that qualification by becoming subject toa forest stewardship plan developed under Section 65A-8a-106 under which the land is subject toa temporary period of limited use or nonuse.
Amended by Chapter 29, 2010 General Session