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farmers can get “rich” is to sell thenproperties- too often for subdivision which will inevitably drive up tax bills for everypne else.
Now, since we’ll be discussing use value anyway during budget preparation, and while we wait for the General Assembly to come up with alternate solutions, it seems to me that the Board should consider improving the existing use value system by acting by June 30 to add “open space” to the land categories qualifying for use value assessment.
Currently, Rappahannock County allows use value taxation for “agricultural” and “forestal" land uses. In order to qualify under those classifications, land must meet certain standards for crops produced, animals supported, or number of trees per acre. These standards are somewhat arbirtrary and difficult for county governments to confirm.
On Jan. 5, 1989, new state law and regulations for “open space” use value went into effect - designed in part to minimize tax burdens on wetlands, steep slopes, and other lands that should be protected in the public interest. But, to qualify for “open
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