Senate File 2017 - Introduced SENATE FILE 2017 BY TAYLOR A BILL FOR An Act relating to the property tax exemption for property 1 designated to be a native prairie or wetland and including 2 effective date and retroactive applicability provisions. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 5537XS (3) 85 md/sc

S.F. 2017 Section 1. Section 427.1, subsection 23, paragraph a, Code 1 2014, is amended to read as follows: 2 a. Application for the exemption shall be made on forms 3 provided by the department of revenue. Land designated as 4 a protected wetland shall be assessed at a value equal to 5 the average value of the land where the wetland is located 6 and which is owned by the person granted the exemption. The 7 application forms shall be filed with the assessing authority 8 not later than the first of February of the year for which the 9 exemption is requested. The application must be accompanied by 10 an affidavit signed by the applicant that if the exemption is 11 granted, the property will not be used for economic gain during 12 the assessment year in which the exemption is granted. The 13 receipt of payments by the applicant under the federal wetlands 14 reserve program, 16 U.S.C. §3837, shall not be considered a use 15 for economic gain. If the property is used for economic gain 16 during the assessment year in which the exemption is granted, 17 the property shall lose its tax exemption and shall be taxed 18 at the rate levied by the county for the fiscal year beginning 19 in that assessment year. The first annual application shall 20 be accompanied by a certificate from the department of natural 21 resources stating that the land is native prairie or protected 22 wetland. The department of natural resources shall issue a 23 certificate for the native prairie exemption if the department 24 finds that the land has never been cultivated, is unimproved, 25 is primarily a mixture of warm season grasses interspersed with 26 flowering plants, and meets the other criteria established 27 by the natural resource commission for native prairie. The 28 department of natural resources shall issue a certificate for 29 the wetland exemption if the department finds the land is a 30 protected wetland, as defined under section 456B.1 , or if 31 the wetland was previously drained and cropped but has been 32 restored under a nonpermanent restoration agreement with the 33 department or other county, state, or federal agency or private 34 conservation group. A taxpayer may seek judicial review of 35 -1- LSB 5537XS (3) 85 md/sc 1/ 2

S.F. 2017 a decision of the department according to chapter 17A . The 1 natural resource commission shall adopt rules to implement this 2 subsection . 3 Sec. 2. IMPLEMENTATION OF ACT. Section 25B.7 shall 4 not apply to this Act to the extent of any insufficient 5 reimbursement of lost tax revenue under section 427.1, 6 subsection 23, paragraph “b”. 7 Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE UPON ENACTMENT. This Act, being deemed of 8 immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment. 9 Sec. 4. RETROACTIVE APPLICABILITY. This Act applies 10 retroactively to January 1, 2014, for assessment years 11 beginning on or after that date. 12 EXPLANATION 13 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 14 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 15 Current Code section 427.1(23) provides a property tax 16 exemption for land designated as native prairie or land 17 designated as a protected wetland by the department of natural 18 resources if the property is not used for economic gain. This 19 bill specifies that the receipt of payments by the applicant 20 under the federal wetlands reserve program shall not be 21 considered a use for economic gain. 22 Code section 25B.7 provides that for a property tax credit 23 or exemption enacted on or after January 1, 1997, if a state 24 appropriation made to fund the credit or exemption is not 25 sufficient to fully fund the credit or exemption, the political 26 subdivision shall be required to extend to the taxpayer only 27 that portion of the credit or exemption estimated by the 28 department of revenue to be funded by the state appropriation. 29 Code section 25B.7 does not apply to the bill insofar as 30 state reimbursement for lost tax revenue is insufficient. 31 The bill takes effect upon enactment and applies 32 retroactively to January 1, 2014, for assessment years 33 beginning on or after that date. 34 -2- LSB 5537XS (3) 85 md/sc 2/ 2