Conservation Organizations Applaud Governor Perdue’s Conservation Tax Credit for Georgia’s Landowners

Govenor Sonny Perdue Signs Conservation Tax Credit Legislation into Law on Earth Day

Atlanta—April 22, 2005—As the country celebrates Earth Day today, Georgia landowners now have an additional incentive to keep their land in its natural state now that Gov. Perdue is signing his Conservation Tax Credit legislation (HB 1107) into law. Conservation organizations across the state, including The Nature Conservancy, the Georgia Land Trust Service Center, the Georgia Conservancy, the Georgia Wildlife Federation, the Trust for Public Land and The Conservation Fund, applaud and support the Governor for introducing and signing off on this legislation.

The conservation tax credit program will provide incentives to Georgia landowners to keep their land undeveloped or as forests through the use of a conservation easement. A conservation easement is a voluntary, permanent agreement between a landowner and either a government entity or a private nonprofit land trust or organization to limit development on a tract of land.

For Georgia taxpayers, conservation easements help keep land in private hands, and the land remains on the county tax digest. For the public, these voluntary land conservation agreements help provide such benefits as protecting drinking water supplies at no cost to the taxpayer.

From an economic and ecological perspective, the conservation tax credit program has the opportunity to protect of millions of dollars in benefits to Georgia – including protecting statewide economic drivers like forestry and commercial fisheries, as well as outdoor recreational opportunities for thousands of residents and tourists — while protecting habitat that is essential for maintaining wildlife and water quality.

“With limited statewide public funding allocated for conservation, Georgia is challenged with protecting important natural areas around the state,” said Tavia McCuean, vice president and state director for The Nature Conservancy in Georgia. “Georgia is fortunate to be one of the few states to have incredibly diverse, undeveloped places across the state that can still be protected to benefit people and nature – and many of these places are in private ownership. This is a wonderful opportunity for Georgian’s to protect our great state for today and future generations.”

“In recent years, voluntary land conservation agreements have become the most effective land conservation tool in the nation. Governor Perdue’s land conservation tax credit program, enacted with unanimous bipartisan support by the legislature, will significantly increase the incentives for Georgians enter into these agreements. The result will be the permanent protection of lands that protect water quality, lands that support farms and forestry, lands that provide natural habitats and recreation uses such as hunting and fishing, lands that preserve historic sites, and lands that provide other important conservation values. Georgians, both present and future, will reap the benefits of this new initiative,” said Hans Neuhauser, executive director for the Georgia Land Trust Service Center.

"Governor Perdue has provided strong leadership for land conservation in Georgia,” said Jim Stokes, president, Georgia Conservancy. “We commend the Governor and the General Assembly which passed the tax credit legislation without a single dissenting vote."

“This legislation provides real incentives to landowners to protect wildlife habitat – thus providing Georgia with a powerful tool to help implement the recently completed State Wildlife Action Plan – the action plan that can help us sustain and protect Georgia’s precious wildlife and the habitat it needs to survive,” noted Jerry McCollum, president and CEO of the Georgia Wildlife Federation.

“This tax credit legislation is a good step towards helping to conserve land in Georgia,” said Jim Langford, Georgia state director for the Trust for Public Land. “We need to find ways to balance Georgia’s explosive growth rate with conservation so future generations will be able to enjoy the beauty and natural wonders of our state that we know today.”

“Thanks to the extraordinary leadership, vision and support of Governor Perdue and the state legislature, we are ensuring the protection of natural resources, safeguarding important wildlife habitat and enhancing public recreation areas for future generations,” said Rex Boner, vice president for The Conservation Fund.

About the Conservation Tax Credit Program
The conservation tax credit joins the Georgia Land Conservation Act passed last year by the General Assembly, which offers $100 million in loans and grants to local governments and the state Department of Natural Resources to conserve land. In March 2006, the Georgia General Assembly approved the Governor’s proposed Conservation Tax Credit program, which provides an additional tax incentive for voluntary land conservation through donations of conservation land or interests in land to qualified land trusts or state or local government agencies for permanent protection. The donor is eligible for a tax credit of 25 percent of the fair market value of the gift up to $250,000 for individuals and $500,000 for corporations. Unused credit may be carried forward for a total of six years. In order to be eligible for a conservation tax credit, the donated land must be certified by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources as “conservation land.”

About The Nature Conservancy
As one of the leading member-driven, land and water conservation organizations in the world, The Nature Conservancy is uniquely defined by its ability to protect and manage land at a global and local level. To date, The Nature Conservancy has protected more than 117 million acres in 28 countries. Throughout its 37-year history of on-the-ground conservation work in Georgia, The Nature Conservancy has helped to protect more than 241,000 acres of longleaf pine forests, barrier islands, floodplain swamps, rock outcrops and other threatened natural areas throughout Georgia. In addition to purchasing land, The Nature Conservancy currently manages 17 preserves and assists with the management of more than 21,000 acres of land.

About The Georgia Land Trust Service Center
The Georgia Land Trust Service Center promotes voluntary land conservation in Georgia, the southeast and nationally by strengthening the capacity of land trusts to conserve land and by linking interested landowners and their land with suitable land trust partners. As part of this work, the Service Center developed and promoted a land conservation tax credit program for Georgia starting in 1999. The Service Center is a special project of the Georgia Environmental Policy Institute, a non-profit organization located in Athens.

About the Georgia Conservancy
Founded in 1967, the Georgia Conservancy is a statewide environmental organization that works to make Georgia a better place to live through environmental education, community outreach, and advocacy. The organization’s work addresses air quality, water quality, land preservation, and quality growth. Georgia Conservancy’s education programs include workshops for classroom teachers and non-formal educators, environmental curricula, and children’s programs.

About the Georgia Wildlife Federation
The Georgia Wildlife Federation is Georgia's oldest and largest conservation organization, and is the state affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation. More than 50,000 members of GWF include bird watchers, hunters, anglers, educators, gardeners, hikers – a diverse group of individuals united by concern and compassion for the environment.

About The Trust for Public Land
Founded in 1972, the Trust for Public Land (TPL) is a national nonprofit land conservation organization that conserves land for people to enjoy as parks, gardens and other natural places, ensuring livable communities for generations to come. Across the nation, TPL has saved more than 1.9 million acres of land. In Georgia, TPL has completed 127 projects and preserved 16,308 acres of land since 1997. It is best known for its work along the Chattahoochee River and currently leads greenspace acquisition efforts along the Atlanta BeltLine.

About The Conservation Fund
The Conservation Fund is the nation's foremost environmental nonprofit dedicated to protecting America's land and water legacy for current and future generations. Seeking innovative conservation solutions for the 21st century, the Fund works to integrate economic and environmental goals. Since its founding in 1985, the Fund has helped its partners safeguard wildlife habitat, working landscapes, community "greenspace," and historic sites totaling more than 40,000 acres in Georgia and 5 million acres nationwide. With 1 percent fund raising costs and 96 percent program allocation, The Conservation Fund is recognized as the nation's top rated environmental nonprofit by both the American Institute of Philanthropy and Charity Navigator.