Green Acres Policy
Purpose
The purpose of the "Green Acres" policy is to provide direction to personnel in both the County Auditor-Treasurer's Office and the County Assessor's Office as well as the general public on the required steps that must be taken to potentially remove all or some land from the “Green Acres” program. This guideline sets forth the procedure for rendering a tax estimate, calculating the tax deferment and subsequent payback, and reviewing the property’s program eligibility due to withdrawal from the program, development, platting, sale, trade, gift, or transfer. It also specifies the process for recording land sales involving parcels enrolled in the “Green Acres” program.
The Minnesota Agricultural Property Tax Law (M.S. 273.111), also known as the “Green Acres” Law, was enacted in 1967 and amended in 2008 and 2009 to equalize taxes on qualifying agricultural properties and to minimize the burden of taxation for farmers who have properties subject to marketplace pressures that reflect non-agricultural influences. It provides certain property owners, who possess only class 2a agricultural land (i.e. at least ten contiguous acres used to produce agricultural products in the preceding year unless the intensive or exclusive provisions of the law apply to the parcel; qualifying land enrolled in an eligible, non-perpetual preservation initiative like CRP, CREP, RIM, or any other state or federal program; and class 2b land that is impractical to separate from the rest of the property or is unlikely to be sold separately), the opportunity to obtain a deferment from higher valuations and taxes payable, including some special assessments, by enrolling in the “Green Acres” program. Class 2b rural vacant land (i.e. sloughs, wetlands, inactive/unused meadow or pasture, and wooded land) that was grandfathered into the program during 2009 may stay in the program until the 2013 assessment. Beginning with the 2013 assessment, any class 2b rural vacant land that was grandfathered into the program will be removed from it and deferred taxes collected.
In order to receive the benefits of the “Green Acres” program, a property owner must submit an Application for Valuation and Tax Deferment of Agricultural Land and a Green Acres Addendum form for each parcel of record to the County Assessor’s Office in a timely manner. Several requirements prescribed by law must be met and approval granted by the county assessor before the value and tax deferment can be extended to the land. This benefit is given every year until the parcel is withdrawn from the program, developed, platted, sold, traded, gifted, transferred to a non-qualifying property owner, or no longer qualifies for the deferment. Once the parcel becomes ineligible, the deferred taxes may be due.
The value of class 2a agricultural land that qualifies for the “Green Acres” tax deferment is based on the lower agricultural values determined annually for each county by the Department of Revenue using an indicated average tillable productive value taken from five base counties (least affected by development pressures) in southwest Minnesota and adjusted by certain valuation factors applied by the county. The grandfathered class 2b land is valued without regard to the influences of commercial-industrial, residential, or seasonal recreational uses, subject to the stipulation that the value cannot exceed the values prescribed by the Commissioner of Revenue for class 2a land. These values are referred to as the “Green Acres Value” for assessment purposes. A separate market value estimate is also made on the qualifying property derived from the sales of comparable properties having the same environing influences. This valuation that is established for assessment use is called the “Market Value.” The taxes on the property are calculated and recorded on the tax rolls each year according to its property tax classification, “Green Acres Value,” and “Market Value,” but the annual payable taxes are based on the “Green Acres Value.” The difference between the taxes based on the agricultural and market values is the amount of taxes that are deferred by law. When the property no longer qualifies for the value and tax deferment, the deferred taxes may be due and payable according to established payback provisions. No payment is required for previously deferred taxes that extend beyond the most recent three years, while land that qualified for the tax deferment over a shorter time period is subject to additional taxes only in the amount equal to the taxes that were deferred.
Only the property that has been valued and assessed under the “Green Acres” program that is withdrawn, developed, platted, sold, traded, gifted, or transferred to a grantee for a use other than farming, put to a non-agricultural use, held by a non-qualifying property owner, or no longer eligible for the deferment as a result of the program requirements is subject to additional taxes. These taxes and any deferred special assessments are a lien upon the property. They are a tax lien to the same extent and duration as the regular payable real estate taxes levied against the property. These taxes are extended by the County Auditor-Treasurer and are collected and distributed in a manner provided by law. They are added to the tax roll for each payable year that the taxes are due as an addition to the levy. If the deferred taxes are unpaid after thirty days from the date when the revised tax statement was mailed, they are considered delinquent and subject to a tax lien, judgment, and forfeiture proceedings.
- The property owner, his/her agent, or a business partner seeking a tax estimate on the deferred taxes must contact the County Auditor-Treasurer by submitting a request at least five working days prior to the time that the information is needed.
- The property owner, his/her agent, or a business partner requesting a payback amount on the deferred taxes must notify the County Auditor-Treasurer’s Office of a pending property transfer or use change relating to “Green Acres” property by submitting a request at least five working days before the closing of the transaction.
- The property owner, his/her agent, or a business partner seeking a review of the property’s future eligibility status in the “Green Acres” program due to withdrawal, development, platting, sale, trade, gift or transfer must notify the County Auditor-Treasurer’s Office by submitting a request at least five working days prior to the time that it is needed.
- The request for a tax estimate, the payback amount on deferred taxes, or a review of the property’s future eligibility status in the program will require the filing of a “Request for Green Acres Tax Information” form. This document must be filled out completely and include a parcel identification number (PIN), a legal description, and/or survey of the property to be withdrawn, developed, platted, sold, traded, gifted, or transferred. A request intended to obtain either a tax estimate or payback amount on deferred taxes will also require a check payment issued to the Stearns County Auditor-Treasurer to cover the administrative fee for processing. Additionally, when a review of the “Green Acres” eligibility status of a property is requested, an Application for Valuation and Tax Deferment of Agricultural land and a Green Acres Addendum form must be completed by the grantee for each parcel. These required items are necessary in order to facilitate processing in both a smooth and timely manner.
- An administrative fee is charged for processing either a tax estimate or payback amount on the deferred taxes for property currently enrolled in the “Green Acres” program. This charge is $50.00 per parcel for each payable year that deferred taxes are required to be calculated. If the deferred taxes are less than $50.00 per parcel for each payable year, the administrative fee will be equivalent to the deferred taxes due and a refund will be issued to the property owner, his/her agent, or business partner making the payment.
- The “Request for Green Acres Tax Information” form should be forwarded by fax, postal mail, email, or hand-delivery in order to facilitate an accurate and correct review. However, a request for either a tax estimate or a payback amount on the deferred taxes will require a check payment to be mailed or hand-delivered along with this form. An incomplete form or one forwarded without a check payment when it is applicable will be returned to the property owner, his/her agent, or business partner, thereby delaying the process.
- Either payment of the deferred taxes due or the approval granted by the county assessor to continue the extension of the value and tax deferment must be made before a legal document transferring ownership or the recording of a plat is certified by the County Auditor-Treasurer’s Office and presented to the County Recorder’s Office for recording.
- In certain instances, some agricultural property may continue to receive the “Green Acres” tax deferment even though it may be partially withdrawn, developed, platted, sold, traded, gifted, or transferred. An application for continuation in the program must be made by the grantee within thirty days of the transfer date to ensure that all or some of the land remains in the program (i.e. some applications received during a recent request for “Green Acres” tax information may satisfy this requirement). The failure to file a timely application with the County Assessor’s Office will result in the loss of the value and tax deferent provided by law. The deferred taxes will be calculated and a revised tax statement issued.
Adopted on the 16th day of January, 2007 by the Stearns County Board of Commissioners
Some program information was revised on the 24th day of September, 2008 to reflect law changes enacted on May 29, 2008, with an effective date of May 1, 2008. It was updated again on the 7th day of December, 2009 to recognize revisions enacted on April 3, 2009, with an effective date for assessment year 2009, or the 21st day of April, 2010 to address legislation signed into law on April 1, 2010, and again on the 5th day of November.