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Virginia last in
spending,'first in
tax incentives
Until the 2005 Session of the Virginia General Assembly, Virginia ranked 50th among states in per capita spending for natural resources. The Commonwealth is still in the bottom 10 percent in this category, but there is some good news. Virginia has the best state tax incentives in the nation for voluntary land preservation. The Virginia Land Preservation Transferable State Income Tax Credit Program is unequivocally ranked as number one among all private land conservation incentive programs in the nation (Land Trust Alliance). This program provides a transferable and unlimited state income tax credit equal to 50 percent of the value of a voluntarily donated conservation easement. This tax credit has resulted in VOF taking more easements in the last 5 years than in the prior 34 years of its existence. The transferability component is the feature that makes the impact of this preservation tax credit so profound. Now the beleaguered family farmers of Virginia, who have struggled to sustain a modest income in the face of rising costs and declining commodity prices, have a viable option to keep their working lands productive as opposed to reaping the last bittersweet harvest by selling the farm to land speculators or developers.
Danger Signals
There is, however, clear and present danger in the form of governmental proposals at both the federal and state levels that may undermine the efficacy of the Virginia conservation tax credit incentive.
The Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation made recommendations for federal tax reforms that would deci
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