House File 2244 - Introduced



                                       HOUSE FILE       
                                       BY  SWAIM

                                       (COMPANION TO LSB 5329SS
                                        BY KREIMAN)


    Passed House, Date               Passed Senate,  Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act limiting the forest reservation acreage property tax
  2    exemption and including effective and applicability date
  3    provisions.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  5 TLSB 5329HH 82
  6 sc/rj/8

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 427C.3, Code 2007, is amended to read
  1  2 as follows:
  1  3    427C.3  FOREST RESERVATION.
  1  4    1.  A forest reservation shall contain not less than two
  1  5 hundred growing forest trees on each acre.  If Subject to the
  1  6 restrictions in subsection 2, if the area selected is a forest
  1  7 containing the required number of growing forest trees, it the
  1  8 area shall be accepted as a forest reservation under this
  1  9 chapter provided application is made or on file on or before
  1 10 February 1 of the exemption year.  If any buildings are
  1 11 standing on an area selected as a forest reservation under
  1 12 this section or a fruit=tree reservation under section 427C.7,
  1 13 one acre of that area shall be excluded from the tax
  1 14 exemption.  However, the exclusion of that acre shall not
  1 15 affect the area's meeting the acreage requirement of section
  1 16 427C.2.
  1 17    2.  An exemption granted for a forest reservation shall not
  1 18 exceed ten acres of reservation.  An owner of a forest
  1 19 reservation is limited to one forest reservation exemption in
  1 20 the county.
  1 21    Sec. 2.  EFFECTIVE AND APPLICABILITY DATE PROVISIONS.  This
  1 22 Act, being deemed of immediate importance, takes effect upon
  1 23 enactment and applies to forest reservation exemptions granted
  1 24 before, on, or after the effective date of this Act.  Forest
  1 25 reservation exemptions in effect as of the effective date of
  1 26 this Act shall be modified so that the amount of exemption
  1 27 does not exceed ten acres of forest reservation and so that
  1 28 only one exemption per owner per county is allowed.
  1 29                           EXPLANATION
  1 30    This bill limits to 10 acres the amount of forest
  1 31 reservation for which a property tax exemption may be granted.
  1 32 The bill also provides that an owner of a forest reservation
  1 33 is limited to one forest reservation exemption in the county.
  1 34    The bill takes effect upon enactment and applies to forest
  1 35 reservation exemptions granted before, on, or after the
  2  1 effective date.
  2  2 LSB 5329HH 82
  2  3 sc/rj/8