Sec. 931.02. (A) Land may be enrolled in an agricultural | 38 |
security area through the submittal of an
application to
the board | 39 |
of township trustees of each township and
to the board of county | 40 |
commissioners
of each county in which the
land is
located | 41 |
requesting the establishment of such an area. If all of the land | 42 |
sought to be enrolled in the agricultural security area is owned | 43 |
by the same person, that person shall submit the application to | 44 |
those boards. If the land sought to be enrolled consists of | 45 |
parcels owned by different persons who have aggregated their | 46 |
parcels, either each owner may submit a separate application to | 47 |
those boards or all of the owners collectively may submit one | 48 |
application for the entire agricultural security area to those | 49 |
boards. | 50 |
(2) Information concerning any property interest in the land | 58 |
sought to be enrolled in an agricultural security area that is | 59 |
held by a person other than the applicant or applicants, | 60 |
including, without
limitation, mineral rights or easements in the | 61 |
land that are held
by a person other than the applicant or | 62 |
applicants and any other interest in the land that may not be | 63 |
conducive to agriculture and that is held by another person; | 64 |
(3) A statement by each applicant who is submitting the | 65 |
application that the applicant will
not initiate, approve, or | 66 |
finance any new development for
nonagricultural purposes on the | 67 |
land that is proposed to be
enrolled in an agricultural security | 68 |
area during the ten-year
period of the enrollment, except as is | 69 |
otherwise authorized under
division (A) of section 931.04 of the | 70 |
Revised Code. For purposes
of division (A)(3) of this section, | 71 |
"new development" includes,
without limitation, an applicant's | 72 |
transfer to another person of
the ownership of a property interest | 73 |
in the land that occurs
during the period beginning on the date | 74 |
that the application is
submitted and ending on the date that the | 75 |
ten-year period of
enrollment is scheduled to expire. "New | 76 |
development" does not
include taking any actions that are | 77 |
authorized under property
rights in the land, such as mineral | 78 |
rights or easements, that were
transferred to a person other than | 79 |
an applicant prior to the date
that the application is submitted. | 80 |
In addition, "new development" does not include the construction, | 81 |
modification, or operation of transmission lines for electricity, | 82 |
gas, or oil or of any gathering or production lines for oil or | 83 |
gas, provided that the construction, modification, or operation of | 84 |
the lines does not cause the land to become ineligible for | 85 |
valuation and assessment for real property tax purposes in | 86 |
accordance with its current agricultural use value under sections | 87 |
5713.30 to 5713.38 of the Revised Code. | 88 |
(4) A listing of all administrative enforcement orders
issued | 89 |
to each applicant who is submitting the application, all civil | 90 |
actions in which an applicant
was determined by the trier of fact | 91 |
to be liable in damages or was
the subject of injunctive relief or | 92 |
another type of civil relief,
and all criminal actions in which an | 93 |
applicant pleaded guilty or
was convicted, during the ten years | 94 |
immediately preceding the date
of submission of the application, | 95 |
in connection with any violation
of environmental laws or similar | 96 |
laws of another state. As used
in division (A)(4) of this section, | 97 |
"environmental laws" has the
same meaning as in section 3745.70 of | 98 |
the Revised Code. | 99 |
(5) A statement from the natural resources conservation | 100 |
service in the United States department of agriculture, a soil and | 101 |
water conservation district with jurisdiction over the land to | 102 |
which the application applies, or any other conservation | 103 |
professional approved by the director that, at the time of the | 104 |
application, each applicant who is submitting the application is | 105 |
complying with best management
practices; | 106 |
(d) Shows the names and locations of all streams, creeks, or | 118 |
other
bodies of water, roads, rights-of-way, railroads, utility | 119 |
lines, and water
and sewer
lines together with any existing | 120 |
residential,
recreational, commercial, or industrial facilities | 121 |
that are on or
are situated on the land to be included in the area | 122 |
and within
five hundred
feet of the perimeter of the area; | 123 |
(3) The land forming the area is valued and assessed for
real | 138 |
property tax purposes in accordance with its current
agricultural | 139 |
use
value under sections 5713.30 to 5713.38 of the
Revised
Code. | 140 |
Land forming the area that is a portion of a farm
on which is | 141 |
located a dwelling house, a yard, or outbuildings such
as a barn | 142 |
or garage shall be deemed to satisfy the criteria
established in | 143 |
divisions (B)(1) and (3) of this section. | 144 |
Sec. 931.03. (A)(1) Not later than sixty days after
receipt | 153 |
of an
application submitted under section 931.02 of the
Revised | 154 |
Code,
the board of township trustees of each township in
which the | 155 |
land
that is proposed for enrollment in an agricultural
security | 156 |
area is located
and the board
of county commissioners of
each | 157 |
county in which the land
is located shall hear the
application at | 158 |
the
next regularly scheduled meeting of the board.
A board, not | 159 |
later than thirty days prior to the time of the
meeting,
shall | 160 |
cause a notice containing the time and place
of the
meeting to be | 161 |
published in a newspaper of
general circulation in
the township or | 162 |
county, as applicable,
and to be sent to the
superintendent of | 163 |
each school district within the proposed
agricultural security | 164 |
area, the county engineer of each county in which the proposed | 165 |
area would be located, and the director of transportation. | 166 |
As part of the hearing on an application, a board shall | 167 |
review any information that it possesses concerning improvements | 168 |
that are planned to be made during the subsequent ten years to | 169 |
existing or proposed roads that are located or are to be located | 170 |
within the area that is proposed
for enrollment in an agricultural | 171 |
security area. As used in
division (A)(1) of this section, | 172 |
"proposed road" means any future roadway project that is on a new | 173 |
alignment or relocation of an existing alignment and for which | 174 |
state or federal funding has been allocated for, but not limited | 175 |
to, a planning level roadway improvement study, an interchange | 176 |
justification or bypass study, environmental review, design, | 177 |
right-of-way acquisition, or construction, and "improvement" | 178 |
includes any action
taken with respect to an existing or proposed | 179 |
road that would cause the road
to cover a portion of land that it | 180 |
does not cover or is not proposed to cover at the time of
the | 181 |
hearing. Any portion of land that would be covered by a
planned | 182 |
improvement shall not be eligible for enrollment in an | 183 |
agricultural security area. | 184 |
(2) The board of township trustees of each township and the | 190 |
board of county commissioners of each county that is required to | 191 |
hear an application under division (A)(1) of this section may | 192 |
conduct a joint meeting in lieu of meeting separately not later | 193 |
than forty-five days after receipt of an application under section | 194 |
931.02 of the Revised Code. A single public notice concerning the | 195 |
meeting shall be provided in the manner prescribed in division | 196 |
(A)(1) of this section in each township and county participating | 197 |
in the meeting. The cost of the public notice shall be shared | 198 |
equally by all townships and counties participating in the joint | 199 |
meeting. | 200 |
(3) Not later than forty-five days after a board of township | 201 |
trustees hears the application and not later than sixty days after | 202 |
a board of county commissioners hears the application, each | 203 |
respective
board shall adopt a resolution
either approving or | 204 |
rejecting the
application.
However, if a board determines that
the | 205 |
information
in the application is
incorrect or the application
is | 206 |
incomplete,
the board shall
return the application to the | 207 |
applicant, by
certified mail, with
an enumeration of the items | 208 |
that are
incorrect or incomplete. | 209 |
(2) Not later than thirty days after a board adopts a | 233 |
resolution
approving the establishment of an agricultural security | 234 |
area, the board shall send a copy
of the resolution,
by certified | 235 |
mail, to the director of
agriculture, the director of | 236 |
transportation, the superintendent of each school district within | 237 |
the area, the county engineer, and the
county auditor. | 238 |
(1) A statement that the board of township trustees or board | 241 |
of county
commissioners, as applicable, commits not to initiate, | 242 |
approve, or finance any development for residential, commercial, | 243 |
or industrial
purposes, including construction of new roads and | 244 |
water and sewer lines,
within the area for a
period of ten years. | 245 |
For purposes of division (C)(1) of this section, "development" | 246 |
does not include any of the following: | 247 |
(b) The construction, modification, or operation of | 254 |
transmission lines for electricity, gas, or oil or of any | 255 |
gathering or production lines for oil or gas, provided that the | 256 |
construction, modification, or operation of the lines does not | 257 |
cause the land to become ineligible for valuation and assessment | 258 |
for real property tax purposes in accordance with its current | 259 |
agricultural use value under sections 5713.30 to 5713.38 of the | 260 |
Revised Code; | 261 |
(c) The construction, modification, or operation of water | 262 |
lines or sewer lines, provided that an official or employee of the | 263 |
environmental protection agency orders the construction, | 264 |
modification, or operation for the purpose of enabling water and | 265 |
sewer service areas that are outside of the agricultural security | 266 |
area to be connected to each other, and provided that the lines do | 267 |
not provide service connections to land within the agricultural | 268 |
security area.
| 269 |
(3) A statement that describes the agreement that was
reached | 272 |
with other boards, if applicable, under section 5709.28 of
the | 273 |
Revised Code concerning the percentage of the taxable value of | 274 |
qualifying agricultural real property in the agricultural security | 275 |
area that is to be exempted from taxation under that section and | 276 |
the number of years that the tax exemption established under that | 277 |
section will apply to that property. | 278 |
(2) Develop, authorize the development of, or, for the | 298 |
purpose of
developing, transfer ownership of a portion of the | 299 |
owner's land within the
agricultural security area for | 300 |
constructing or otherwise
establishing a single-family residence | 301 |
for an
individual who is related by
consanguinity or by affinity | 302 |
to the
owner. Not more than one such residence shall be | 303 |
constructed per each forty acres of the owner's land within the | 304 |
agricultural security area. | 305 |
Sec. 931.06. Not later than one hundred eighty days
prior to | 341 |
the
expiration of an agricultural security area, an owner
of land | 342 |
that is enrolled
in the area may renew the enrollment.
The | 343 |
procedures established under this
chapter for the initial | 344 |
enrollment of land in an agricultural security area apply to the | 345 |
renewal of enrollment. In addition, all of the requirements | 346 |
governing initial enrollment apply to enrollment renewal. | 347 |
(3) The county auditor of a county in which land enrolled in | 377 |
an agricultural security area is located who discovers that any of | 378 |
the events described in division (A)(2) of this section has | 379 |
occurred and that the owner of the land has not complied with the | 380 |
notice requirements established in that division shall provide the | 381 |
required notice to the parties listed in division (A)(1) of this | 382 |
section, except that for the purposes of division (A)(1)(a) of | 383 |
this section, the auditor need notify only the county auditors of | 384 |
the other affected counties.
| 385 |
(C)(1) If an owner of land that is enrolled in an | 391 |
agricultural
security
area withdraws from the area under this | 392 |
section
or if at any time an owner's land fails to
satisfy either | 393 |
of the criteria
established under division (B)(2)
or (3) of | 394 |
section 931.02 of the Revised Code,
any other owners of
land that | 395 |
is enrolled in the
area who do not withdraw and whose
land | 396 |
satisfies those criteria
may
continue to have
their land enrolled | 397 |
in
the agricultural security
area until the enrollment expires | 398 |
under any of the following circumstances: | 399 |
(b) Within the first five years of a ten-year enrollment | 403 |
period, if the number of acres remaining in the area has | 404 |
diminished to fewer than five hundred, enrollment may continue | 405 |
only if additional contiguous farmland is enrolled in the area to | 406 |
the extent that the number of acres in the area increases once | 407 |
more to equal five hundred or more. Such an increase in acreage | 408 |
may occur through the addition of contiguous farmland to the area | 409 |
either by a landowner who already has land enrolled in the area or | 410 |
by another landowner. In either case, in order to enroll the land | 411 |
in the area, the landowner shall submit, not later than sixty days | 412 |
following the date on which the acreage in the area diminished to | 413 |
fewer than five hundred, an application in accordance with section | 414 |
931.02 of the Revised Code. The landowner shall obtain approval of | 415 |
the application from all appropriate boards of township trustees | 416 |
and boards of county commissioners in accordance with section | 417 |
931.03 of the Revised Code. Enrollment of the additional land in | 418 |
the agricultural security area shall continue until the expiration | 419 |
of the existing, partially elapsed ten-year enrollment period and | 420 |
may be renewed in accordance with section 931.06 of the Revised | 421 |
Code. | 422 |
(2) If the state or a municipal corporation appropriates
part | 426 |
of the land that is enrolled in an agricultural security area
and, | 427 |
as a result of the
appropriation, the area fails to satisfy
the | 428 |
criterion established under
division
(B)(1) of section 931.02
of | 429 |
the Revised Code, the
owners of land enrolled in the area whose | 430 |
land satisfies the
criteria established under divisions (B)(2) and | 431 |
(3) of that section
may continue to have their land enrolled in | 432 |
the agricultural
security area until the enrollment expires. | 433 |
Sec. 931.09. The director of agriculture shall prepare and | 447 |
submit to the
governor, the president of the senate, and the | 448 |
speaker of the house of
representatives an annual report | 449 |
concerning agricultural security areas in the
state. The report | 450 |
shall include information concerning the number of
acres that are | 451 |
enrolled in agricultural security areas and their
location and
any | 452 |
tax
exemptions granted under section 5709.28 of the Revised Code. | 453 |
In the case of an agricultural security area that is located | 461 |
in more than one township, the clerk shall divide half of the fine | 462 |
money in equal shares among the townships and shall forward the | 463 |
appropriate portion to each board of township trustees. In the | 464 |
case of an agricultural security area that is located in more than | 465 |
one county, the clerk shall divide half of the fine money in equal | 466 |
shares among the counties and shall forward the appropriate | 467 |
portion to each board of county commissioners. | 468 |
Sec. 5709.28. As used in this section,
"qualifying | 472 |
agricultural
real property" means a building, structure, | 473 |
improvement, or fixture that is used exclusively for agricultural | 474 |
purposes, is
located on land enrolled in an
agricultural security | 475 |
area established under
Chapter 931. of the
Revised Code, and has a | 476 |
true value in
money of twenty-five thousand
dollars or more. | 477 |
At the time of the establishment or renewal of an | 478 |
agricultural security area or at any time during which land is | 479 |
enrolled in an agricultural security area, a percentage of the | 480 |
taxable value of qualifying
agricultural
real property first | 481 |
appearing on the real and public
utility
property tax list in a | 482 |
tax year during the enrollment may be exempted from
taxation.
The | 483 |
board of township trustees of each township in which the land
that | 484 |
is enrolled in the agricultural security area is located and
the | 485 |
board of county commissioners of each county in which the land
is | 486 |
located shall confer with each other and reach an agreement | 487 |
concerning the tax exemption. At the time the agreement is | 488 |
reached, the boards shall send written notice of the agreement to | 489 |
the superintendent of each school district within the agricultural | 490 |
security area. After the agreement is reached and the tax | 491 |
exemption is granted, the qualifying agricultural real property | 492 |
shall become exempt in the tax year following the year in which | 493 |
the construction of the property is completed. | 494 |
The agreement shall establish the percentage of the
taxable | 495 |
value of qualifying agricultural real property that is to
be | 496 |
exempted from taxation and the number of years that the tax | 497 |
exemption will apply to that property. The agreement may specify | 498 |
that the tax years during which the exemption will apply to the | 499 |
property may extend past the scheduled expiration date of the | 500 |
period of enrollment in the agricultural security area, provided | 501 |
that the enrollment is renewed and otherwise continues during the | 502 |
tax years that the exemption applies. The agreement shall not | 503 |
exempt from taxation more than seventy-five per cent of the | 504 |
taxable value of the qualifying agricultural real property. In | 505 |
addition, the agreement may establish the maximum amount of the | 506 |
value of the qualifying agricultural real property to which the | 507 |
tax exemption may apply. Subsequent to the agreement establishing | 508 |
that maximum amount, the owner of the property may request the | 509 |
applicable boards to alter the agreement and increase the maximum | 510 |
value of the property to which the tax exemption applies. The | 511 |
agreement shall be reviewed annually by the tax incentive review | 512 |
council in accordance with section 5709.85 of the Revised Code. | 513 |
Each time that a renewal application is filed for an | 514 |
agricultural security area that involves qualifying agricultural | 515 |
real property that has been the subject of an exemption that | 516 |
expired on or before the date on which the previous period of | 517 |
enrollment in an agricultural security area expired, the | 518 |
applicable boards shall reach a new agreement concerning the | 519 |
exemption before any of the boards adopts a resolution either | 520 |
approving or rejecting the renewal application. | 521 |
The county auditor shall enter on the list of property | 522 |
described in section 5713.07 of the Revised Code that is exempt | 523 |
from taxation any qualifying agricultural real property that is | 524 |
the subject of an exemption under this section. An application | 525 |
shall not be required to be filed under section 5715.27 of the | 526 |
Revised Code with respect to the exemption. The county auditor | 527 |
shall remove the qualifying agricultural real property from the | 528 |
list at the time that the county auditor discovers or is notified | 529 |
under section 931.07 of the Revised Code that a withdrawal, | 530 |
removal, or conversion of land from an agricultural security area | 531 |
has occurred in a way that makes the qualifying agricultural real | 532 |
property no longer eligible for the exemption. | 533 |
If the county auditor removes qualifying agricultural real | 534 |
property from the list of property that is exempt from taxation | 535 |
and the owner of the removed property claimed a tax exemption | 536 |
established under this
section for a prior tax year, the amount of | 537 |
tax otherwise imposed
on the qualifying agricultural real property | 538 |
that was the subject
of the exemption shall be increased. The | 539 |
amount of the increase
shall equal the aggregate
value of the tax | 540 |
exemption received by
the taxpayer under this
section since the | 541 |
agricultural security
area was most recently approved for | 542 |
establishment or renewal, as
applicable, plus interest
on that | 543 |
amount at the average bank prime
rate, as determined under
section | 544 |
929.02 of the Revised Code, at
the time that the county auditor | 545 |
removes the property from the list of property that is exempt from | 546 |
taxation. The tax
year in which the increase shall occur is | 547 |
dependent upon the date
on which the county auditor makes a | 548 |
discovery or is notified
under section 931.07 of the Revised Code | 549 |
that a withdrawal,
removal, or conversion of land from an | 550 |
agricultural security area
has occurred. If the discovery or | 551 |
notification occurs prior to
the date in a tax year on which the | 552 |
county auditor delivers a copy
of the general tax list to the | 553 |
county treasurer under section
319.28 of the Revised Code, the | 554 |
increase shall occur in the same
tax year that the discovery or | 555 |
notification occurred. If the
discovery or notification occurs on | 556 |
or after the date in a tax
year on which the copy of the general | 557 |
tax list is delivered to the
county treasurer, the increase shall | 558 |
occur in the tax year that
immediately follows the year in which | 559 |
the discovery or
notification occurred. | 560 |
Sec. 5709.85. (A) The legislative authority of a county, | 561 |
township, or municipal corporation that grants an exemption from | 562 |
taxation under Chapter 725. or 1728. or under section 3735.67, | 563 |
5709.28,
5709.40, 5709.41, 5709.62, 5709.63, 5709.632, 5709.73, or | 564 |
5709.78
of the Revised Code shall create a tax incentive review | 565 |
council.
The council shall consist of the following members: | 566 |
(1) In the case of a municipal corporation eligible to | 567 |
designate a zone under section 5709.62 of the Revised Code, the | 568 |
chief executive officer or that officer's
designee; a member of | 569 |
the
legislative authority of the municipal corporation, appointed | 570 |
by
the president of the legislative authority or, if the chief | 571 |
executive officer of the municipal corporation is the president, | 572 |
appointed by the president pro tempore of the legislative | 573 |
authority; the county auditor or the county auditor's
designee; | 574 |
the chief
financial officer of the municipal corporation or that | 575 |
officer's designee; an individual appointed by the board of | 576 |
education of each city, local, exempted village, and joint | 577 |
vocational school
district to
which the instrument granting the | 578 |
exemption applies; and two
members of the public appointed by the | 579 |
chief executive officer of
the municipal corporation with the | 580 |
concurrence of the legislative
authority. At least four members of | 581 |
the council shall be
residents of the municipal corporation, and | 582 |
at least one of the
two public members appointed by the chief | 583 |
executive officer shall
be a minority. As used in division (A)(1) | 584 |
of this section, a
"minority" is an individual who is | 585 |
African-American, Hispanic, or
Native American. | 586 |
(2) In the case of a county or a municipal corporation
that | 587 |
is not eligible to designate a zone under section 5709.62 or | 588 |
5709.632 of the Revised Code, three members appointed by the
board | 589 |
of county commissioners; two members from each municipal | 590 |
corporation to which the instrument granting the tax exemption | 591 |
applies, appointed by the chief executive officer with the | 592 |
concurrence of the legislative authority of the respective | 593 |
municipal corporations; two members of each township to which the | 594 |
instrument granting the tax exemption applies, appointed by the | 595 |
board of township trustees of the respective townships; the
county | 596 |
auditor or the county auditor's designee; and an
individual | 597 |
appointed by
the board of education of each city, local, exempted | 598 |
village, and
joint vocational school district to which the | 599 |
instrument granting
the tax exemption applies. At least two | 600 |
members of the council
shall be residents of the municipal | 601 |
corporations or townships to
which the instrument granting the tax | 602 |
exemption applies. | 603 |
(C)(1) Annually, the tax incentive review council shall | 617 |
review all agreements granting exemptions from property taxation | 618 |
under Chapter 725. or 1728. or under section 3735.671, 5709.28, | 619 |
5709.62,
5709.63, or 5709.632 of the Revised Code, and any | 620 |
performance or
audit reports required to be submitted pursuant to | 621 |
those
agreements. The review shall include agreements granting | 622 |
such exemptions that were entered into prior to July 22, 1994, | 623 |
that continue to be in force and applicable to the current year's | 624 |
property taxes. With | 625 |
With respect to an agreement entered into under section | 632 |
5709.28 of the Revised Code, the council shall consist of the | 633 |
members described in division (A)(2) of this section and shall | 634 |
determine whether the agreement complies with the requirements of | 635 |
section 5709.28 of the Revised Code and whether a withdrawal, | 636 |
removal, or conversion of land from an agricultural security area | 637 |
established under Chapter 931. of the Revised Code has occurred in | 638 |
a manner that makes the exempted property no longer eligible for | 639 |
the exemption. | 640 |
(2) Annually, the tax incentive review council shall
review | 645 |
all exemptions from property taxation resulting from the | 646 |
declaration of public purpose improvements pursuant to section | 647 |
5709.40, 5709.41, 5709.73, or 5709.78 of the Revised Code. The | 648 |
review shall include such exemptions that were granted prior to | 649 |
July 22, 1994, that continue to be in force and applicable to the | 650 |
current year's property taxes. With
respect to each improvement | 651 |
for which an exemption is granted,
the council shall determine the | 652 |
increase in the true value of
parcels of real property on which | 653 |
improvements have been
undertaken as a result of the exemption; | 654 |
the value of
improvements exempted from taxation as a result of | 655 |
the exemption;
and the number of new employees or employees | 656 |
retained on the site
of the improvement as a result of the | 657 |
exemption. | 658 |
Upon the request of a tax incentive review council, the | 659 |
county auditor, the housing officer appointed pursuant to section | 660 |
3735.66 of the Revised Code, the owner of a new or remodeled | 661 |
structure or improvement, and the legislative authority of the | 662 |
county, township, or municipal corporation granting the exemption | 663 |
shall supply the council with any information reasonably
necessary | 664 |
for the council to make the determinations required
under division | 665 |
(C) of this section, including returns or reports filed
pursuant | 666 |
to sections 5711.02, 5711.13, and 5727.08 of the Revised Code. | 667 |
(D) Annually, the tax incentive review council shall
review | 668 |
the compliance of each recipient of a tax exemption under
Chapter | 669 |
725. or 1728. or section 3735.67, 5709.40, 5709.41,
5709.62, | 670 |
5709.63, 5709.632, 5709.73, or 5709.78 of the Revised
Code with | 671 |
the nondiscriminatory hiring policies developed by the
county, | 672 |
township, or municipal corporation under section 5709.832
of the | 673 |
Revised Code. Upon the request of the council, the
recipient shall | 674 |
provide the council any information necessary to
perform its | 675 |
review. On the basis of its review, the council may
submit to the | 676 |
legislative authority written recommendations for
enhancing | 677 |
compliance with the nondiscriminatory hiring policies. | 678 |
(F) A tax incentive review council may request from the | 684 |
recipient of a tax exemption under Chapter 725. or 1728., or | 685 |
section 3735.67, 5709.28, 5709.40, 5709.41, 5709.62, 5709.63, | 686 |
5709.632, 5709.73, or 5709.78 of the Revised Code any information | 687 |
reasonably necessary for the council to perform its review under | 688 |
this section. The request shall be in writing and shall be sent to | 689 |
the recipient by certified mail. Within ten days after receipt of | 690 |
the request, the recipient shall provide to the council the | 691 |
information requested. | 692 |