from Stan Matthews
County Information and Internet Manager
This week, in the wake of an Attorney General’s opinion, the first of dozens of notices will go out to owners of properties in San Juan County which have been benefiting from a tax break for which they do not appear to qualify.
The properties, currently classified as “Current Use Farm and Agricultural Land,” are taxed at a fraction of their actual market value as part of a program sanctioned by state law. But the law requires the actual use of the land to meet certain requirements. It must be devoted primarily to agricultural uses for commercial purposes and it must produce a certain level of income or profit from the production of agricultural products.
A property which is removed from the program must repay the last 7 years of tax reduction plus interest and penalty on the difference between the full tax rate and the taxes actually paid during those years.
In lieu of removing non-compliant lands from the Program, the Assessor and the Prosecuting Attorney, developed a deferral agreement which would have been offered to owners of agricultural land that is actually being farmed. The agreement would have given these owners up to three years to bring their lands into compliance.
The State Attorney General was asked to review the legality of the use of this deferral agreement. The Attorney General rendered the opinion that the Assessor must act “promptly” to remove non-compliant parcels from the special tax program and to “impose any additional tax, interest and penalty provided under state law.”
“I have sympathy for many of the landowners involved,” Zalmanek said. “However, all of the people who have been receiving this tax break did sign agreements that laid out the requirements and the penalties for not meeting them. At issue,” he said, “is fairness and the requirements of the law. The reduced taxes paid on properties in the ’Current Use’ programs are shifted to the rest of the County’s taxpayers. And now the Attorney General has made it clear that the duty of the Assessor is to act promptly to remove non-compliant lands from this special tax program.”
Zalmanek noted that some properties which do not meet the requirements for the Current Use Farm and Agricultural Program may qualify for other programs and that a few properties have already been reclassified into a different tax program, without penalty. More detailed information on the Farm and Agricultural, Open Space, and Timber Programs is available on the County website at: https://sanjuanco.com/assessor/current.aspx or by contacting the Assessor’s Office at 378-2172 or _Assessor@sanjuanco.com .
Even though several of my close friends benefit from the farm and agricultural land tax break, I am pleased to see that the requirements are being enforced … and strictly. Our state needs revenue to fund schools and FERRIES and highways and other infrastructure. Property which is used for farm and agricultural purposes, but which is really …at best … a hobby, should be taxed as all residential property. I know that this tax exemption/dodge is being used, and I hope that those who use it will think carefully about this.