Issue Position: Environmental Incentives for Landowners

Issue Position

I believe conservation is an investment in our future. Unfortunately, the rate of land we are losing to development is staggering and impacts the rural and natural culture of our district. Each year, the United States loses two million acres of land to urbanization. In California, because of population growth, it is estimated that we may lose as much private land to development in the next 35 years, as we did in the 150 years from the California Gold Rush of 1849 to 2000! I feel strongly that we need to preserve every appropriate open space that we can, so that our children and grandchildren can enjoy the same vistas, clean air and clean water that we have today. That's what drives me to work for land conservation and open space preservation in Congress.

I recently introduced a bill that would help preserve our agricultural lands and open spaces. My bill would make it easier for family farms and ranches to be free from development, and preserve our heritage by bringing tax relief to family farmers, ranchers, and open space landholders so that open spaces are not broken up through generations. Nearly three quarters of the land in the lower 48 states of the U.S. is in private ownership, with the vast majority owned by farmers, ranchers and forest landowners. These lands are vital to both healthy ecosystems and vibrant rural communities. They contribute to clean water, climate benefits, food and fiber production, and wildlife habitat. Providing additional incentives to keep these lands in agriculture and open space will help us preserve these areas and culture.

In order to preserve our open spaces, I've also introduced legislation to permanently allow landowners to get significant tax deductions if they voluntarily place a conservation easement on their property. These conservation easements allow property owners to continue using the land, while protecting the land from future development. In August 2006, Congress passed provisions I wrote that enhanced the tax incentive for the donation of conservation easements by allowing landowners. With these enhanced tax provisions, 535,000 more acres were put into land trusts in the last two years. Hopefully, we can make this important tax benefit permanent so we can maximize the lands that are protected.

I've also sponsored legislation to protect endangered species. "The Endangered Species Recovery Act," which became law in 2008, allows land owners to take a tax deduction for implementing recovery plans for federally threatened and endangered species on their property. This law was the first tax incentive ever given to landowners to help protect or recover species federally listed under the Endangered Species Act.

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