To enact sections 303.024, 307.071, 505.708, 519.023, 713.16, and 713.17 of the Revised Code to permit townships, counties, and combinations of townships, counties, and municipal corporations to establish transfer of development rights programs.

Section 1. That sections 303.024, 307.071, 505.708, 519.023, 713.16, and 713.17 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 303.024. (A) As used in this section:

(1) "Agricultural easement" and "conservation easement" have the same meanings as in section 5301.67 of the Revised Code, except that the easement also shall be a permanent easement granted under section 5301.68 of the Revised Code and transferred to an entity specified in section 5301.69 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Development right" means a specified right assigned to a parcel of property in a sending area that may be transferred from that property for application and use on property located in a designated receiving area. "Development right" includes any of the following:

(a) A variation in the height, bulk, number of stories, and size of buildings, in the density of population, or in the square footage of buildings or other structures allowed in a receiving area under applicable zoning or subdivision regulations;

(b) A variation in the number of parking spaces required in a receiving area under applicable building or parking space regulations;

(c) A variation in the size of lots, set-back building lines, or the size of yards and courts of buildings and other structures, in percentages of lot areas that may be occupied by buildings and other structures, or in open space requirements allowed in a receiving area under applicable zoning or subdivision regulations;

(d) A variation in utility service tap-in fees or other utility fees and charges charged in a receiving area by the county;

(e) A variation in open space requirements in local laws applicable to a receiving area;

(f) Any other right that varies the density or intensity of development in a receiving area or that makes development in a receiving area economically beneficial.

(3) "Receiving area" means an area of land in the unincorporated area of a county where development rights transferred from a sending area may be applied and used.

(4) "Sending area" means an area of land in the unincorporated area of a county from which assigned development rights can be transferred for use in a receiving area.

(B) A board of county commissioners may establish a transfer of development rights program whereby the owner of real property in a designated sending area in the unincorporated territory of the county may agree to have the owner's real property placed in an agricultural or conservation easement in exchange for an assignment of development rights to that property that the owner may transfer for application and use on real property in a designated receiving area in the unincorporated territory of the county. The program may be established only after the board of county commissioners conducts a study and adopts a plan based upon the results of that study. The study and resulting plan together shall do all of the following:

(1) Determine the purpose for which the program should be created, which shall be one or more of the following:

(a) Protection of the natural, scenic, agricultural, or open space qualities of land, or the preservation of natural resources;

(b) Enhancement of sites and areas of special character or historical, cultural, aesthetic, or economic interest or value;

(c) Encouragement of development in areas deemed appropriate by the county;

(d) Protection and management of land, water, and other natural resources.

(2) Determine the best location for sending areas and receiving areas to accomplish the purposes of the program and to manage development;

(3) Include a resource assessment to determine which areas should be preserved or developed to further the purposes of the program;

(4) Determine what incentives may be used in sending and receiving areas to make the program more effective;

(5) Determine the nature and number of development rights that may be severed from each sending area and then attached to a parcel of real property in a receiving area;

(6) Estimate the population and economic growth during the next ten years in the unincorporated territory of the county and estimate the development potential of each proposed sending area and receiving area;

(7) Consider the density and intensity of development allowed under applicable zoning, building, and other regulations prior to the implementation of the program;

(8) Estimate the existing and proposed infrastructure capacity, including services and facilities, in each proposed receiving area;

(9) In terms of infrastructure, services, and land availability, ensure that a receiving area is able to accommodate the density and intensity of development associated with the number of development rights that may be applied to it;

(10) Ensure that the program is consistent with the comprehensive land use plan that is the basis of the county's zoning regulations.

(C) The board of county commissioners may establish a transfer of development rights program by adopting a zoning resolution or amending an existing zoning resolution. An amendment establishing the program may be initiated only under section 303.12 of the Revised Code by motion of the county rural zoning commission or by the passage of a resolution by the board of county commissioners directing the county rural zoning commission to propose an amendment.

The zoning resolution or amendment establishing the program shall include procedures for when and how the program's provisions will be applied to property and the procedures to be used by property owners for the actual transfer of development rights from property in a sending area to property in a receiving area. The regulations imposed by the zoning resolution or amendment establishing the program need not be uniform for each class or type of building or other structure or for each use of property throughout any sending or receiving area, but may vary in order to accommodate development and provide adequate incentives to encourage participation in the program.

The zoning resolution or amendment establishing the program may designate an administrative board to administer transfers of development rights, which board may be the county rural zoning commission, the county board of zoning appeals, a county or regional planning commission, the board of county commissioners, or a newly created board appointed by the board of county commissioners. If a new board is created to be the administrative board, the board shall consist of an odd number of members, not to exceed five, who shall serve staggered terms of office.

If the board of county commissioners is the administrative board for a transfer of development rights program, the board's actions to effectuate the actual transfer of development rights are adjudicative, not legislative, actions that may be appealed under Chapter 2506. of the Revised Code.

(D) The zoning resolution or amendment establishing a transfer of development rights program may allow for the creation of an overlay to the zoning map that identifies specific areas in the unincorporated territory of the county that may be designated as sending areas and as receiving areas. Alternatively, the zoning resolution or amendment itself may designate specific sending areas or receiving areas as an overlay to the zoning map. A property owner who desires to have the owner's property designated as a sending area or a receiving area consistent with the plan required by division (B) of this section may apply to have the zoning resolution amended under section 303.12 of the Revised Code to include such an overlay to the zoning map.

A designation as either a sending area or a receiving area on an overlay to the zoning map does not affect the underlying base zoning, and a property owner retains all rights, privileges, and obligations related to that underlying base zoning.

(E)(1) The zoning resolution or amendment establishing a transfer of development rights program may create a transfer of development rights bank, to be known as a TDR bank, managed by an advisory board, known as the TDR bank advisory board. The TDR bank advisory board may be configured in any manner the board of county commissioners chooses. If the board of county commissioners creates an administrative board to administer transfers of development rights, it may designate that administrative board also to act as the TDR bank advisory board.

(2) If the zoning resolution or amendment creates a TDR bank, it also shall authorize the TDR bank, through the TDR bank advisory board, to do the following:

(a) Oversee development and implementation of the transfer of development rights program;

(b) Purchase development rights, and sell or convey any development rights it possesses, as directed by the board of county commissioners;

(c) Hold indefinitely any development rights it possesses;

(d) Receive donations of development rights;

(e) Facilitate transactions between property owners in sending and receiving areas through technical assistance and education;

(f) Monitor conservation or agricultural easements in the sending area;

(g) Receive funding from the county, proceeds of sales of development rights, and donations;

(h) Manage the TDR bank fund described in section 307.071 of the Revised Code;

(i) If directed to do so by the board of county commissioners, establish a selling price for development rights it possesses, based on local market forces, and extinguish development rights in its possession in the absence of a buyer in the receiving area.

(F) The establishment of a transfer of development rights program and the designation of specific areas as sending areas or as receiving areas are legislative acts subject to section 303.12 of the Revised Code. All actions undertaken under an established transfer of development rights program are adjudicative actions subject to appeal under Chapter 2506. of the Revised Code.

(G) If any sending area or receiving area designated in a county transfer of development rights program includes unincorporated territory in which no township zoning regulations or county zoning regulations apply, the board of county commissioners shall provide written notice to the boards of township trustees in the townships in which that territory is located to inform the townships that a county transfer of development rights program has been created that will affect territory in them.

If any sending area or receiving area designated in a county transfer of development rights program includes unincorporated territory in which township zoning regulations apply, the program cannot be implemented in that territory until a majority of the board of township trustees adopts a resolution approving the program in the territory, and the resolution is sent to and received by the board of county commissioners.

Sec. 307.071. A board of county commissioners that creates a transfer of development rights program under section 303.024 of the Revised Code may establish, as a separate fund in the county treasury, a TDR bank fund that shall consist of all moneys received in connection with the county's transfer of development rights program. If a TDR bank fund is established, the board of county commissioners shall have responsibility for the expenditure of all moneys in the fund in accordance with the program's provisions, and the board also shall appoint a TDR bank advisory board that shall make recommendations to the board of county commissioners on the purchase and sale of development rights under the transfer of development rights program and perform the other functions enumerated in division (E) of section 303.024 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 505.708. A board of township trustees that creates a transfer of development rights program under section 519.023 of the Revised Code may establish, as a separate fund in the township treasury, a TDR bank fund that shall consist of all moneys received in connection with the township's transfer of development rights program. If a TDR bank fund is established, the board of township trustees shall have responsibility for the expenditure of all moneys in the fund in accordance with the program's provisions, and the board also shall appoint a TDR bank advisory board that shall make recommendations to the board of township trustees on the purchase and sale of development rights under the transfer of development rights program and perform the other functions enumerated in division (E) of section 519.023 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 519.023. (A) As used in this section:

(1) "Agricultural easement" and "conservation easement" have the same meanings as in section 5301.67 of the Revised Code, except that the easement also shall be a permanent easement granted under section 5301.68 of the Revised Code and transferred to an entity specified in section 5301.69 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Development right" means a specified right assigned to a parcel of property in a sending area that may be transferred from that property for application and use on property located in a designated receiving area. "Development right" includes any of the following:

(a) A variation in the height, bulk, number of stories, and size of buildings, in the density of population, or in the square footage of buildings or other structures allowed in a receiving area under applicable zoning or subdivision regulations;

(b) A variation in the number of parking spaces required in a receiving area under applicable building or parking space regulations;

(c) A variation in the size of lots, set-back building lines, or the size of yards and courts of buildings and other structures, in percentages of lot areas that may be occupied by buildings and other structures, or in open space requirements allowed in a receiving area under applicable zoning or subdivision regulations;

(d) A variation in utility service tap-in fees or other utility fees and charges charged in a receiving area by a township that has adopted a limited home rule form of government under Chapter 504. of the Revised Code;

(e) A variation in open space requirements in local laws applicable to a receiving area;

(f) Any other right that varies the density or intensity of development in a receiving area or that makes development in a receiving area economically beneficial.

(3) "Receiving area" means an area of land in the unincorporated area of a township where development rights transferred from a sending area may be applied and used.

(4) "Sending area" means an area of land in the unincorporated area of a township from which assigned development rights can be transferred for use in a receiving area.

(B) A board of township trustees may establish a transfer of development rights program whereby the owner of real property in a designated sending area in the unincorporated territory of the township may agree to have the owner's property placed in an agricultural or conservation easement in exchange for an assignment of development rights to that property that the owner may transfer for application and use on real property in a designated receiving area in the unincorporated territory of the township. The program may be established only after the board of township trustees conducts a study and adopts a plan based upon the results of that study. The study and resulting plan together shall do all of the following:

(1) Determine the purpose for which the program should be created, which shall be one or more of the following:

(a) Protection of the natural, scenic, agricultural, or open space qualities of land, or the preservation of natural resources;

(b) Enhancement of sites and areas of special character or historical, cultural, aesthetic, or economic interest or value;

(c) Encouragement of development in areas deemed appropriate by the township;

(d) Protection and management of land, water, and other natural resources.

(2) Determine the best location for sending areas and receiving areas to accomplish the purposes of the program and to manage development;

(3) Include a resource assessment to determine which areas should be preserved or developed to further the purposes of the program;

(4) Determine what incentives may be used in sending and receiving areas to make the program more effective;

(5) Determine the nature and number of development rights that may be severed from each sending area and then attached to a parcel of real property in a receiving area;

(6) Estimate the population and economic growth during the next ten years in the unincorporated territory of the township and estimate the development potential of each proposed sending area and receiving area;

(7) Consider the density and intensity of development allowed under applicable zoning, building, and other regulations prior to the implementation of the program;

(8) Estimate the existing and proposed infrastructure capacity, including services and facilities, in each proposed receiving area;

(9) In terms of infrastructure, services, and land availability, ensure that a receiving area is able to accommodate the density and intensity of development associated with the number of development rights that may be applied to it;

(10) Ensure that the program is consistent with the comprehensive land use plan that is the basis of the township's zoning regulations.

(C) The board of township trustees may establish a transfer of development rights program by adopting a zoning resolution or amending an existing zoning resolution. An amendment establishing the program may be initiated only under section 519.12 of the Revised Code by motion of the township zoning commission or by the passage of a resolution by the board of township trustees directing the township zoning commission to propose an amendment.

The zoning resolution or amendment establishing the program shall include procedures for when and how the program's provisions will be applied to property and the procedures to be used by property owners for the actual transfer of development rights from property in a sending area to property in a receiving area. The regulations imposed by the zoning resolution or amendment establishing the program need not be uniform for each class or type of building or other structure or for each use of property throughout any sending or receiving area, but may vary in order to accommodate development and provide adequate incentives to encourage participation in the program.

The zoning resolution or amendment establishing the program may designate an administrative board to administer transfers of development rights, which board may be the township zoning commission, the township board of zoning appeals, a county or regional planning commission, the board of township trustees, or a newly created board appointed by the board of township trustees. If a new board is created to be the administrative board, the board shall consist of an odd number of members, not to exceed five, who shall serve staggered terms of office.

If the board of township trustees is the administrative board for a transfer of development rights program, the board's actions to effectuate the actual transfer of development rights are adjudicative, not legislative, actions that may be appealed under Chapter 2506. of the Revised Code.

(D) The zoning resolution or amendment establishing a transfer of development rights program may allow for the creation of an overlay to the zoning map that identifies specific areas in the unincorporated territory of the township that may be designated as sending areas and as receiving areas. Alternatively, the zoning resolution or amendment itself may designate specific sending areas or receiving areas as an overlay to the zoning map. A property owner who desires to have the owner's property designated as a sending area or a receiving area consistent with the plan required by division (B) of this section may apply to have the zoning resolution amended under section 519.12 of the Revised Code to include such an overlay to the zoning map.

A designation as either a sending area or a receiving area on an overlay to the zoning map does not affect the underlying base zoning, and a property owner retains all rights, privileges, and obligations related to that underlying base zoning.

(E)(1) The zoning resolution or amendment establishing a transfer of development rights program may create a transfer of development rights bank, to be known as a TDR bank, managed by an advisory board, known as the TDR bank advisory board. The TDR bank advisory board may be configured in any manner the board of township trustees chooses. If the board of township trustees creates an administrative board to administer transfers of development rights, it may designate that administrative board also to act as the TDR bank advisory board.

(2) If the zoning resolution or amendment creates a TDR bank, it also shall authorize the TDR bank, through the TDR bank advisory board, to do the following:

(a) Oversee development and implementation of the transfer of development rights program;

(b) Purchase development rights, and sell or convey any development rights it possesses, as directed by the board of township trustees;

(c) Hold indefinitely any development rights it possesses;

(d) Receive donations of development rights;

(e) Facilitate transactions between property owners in sending and receiving areas through technical assistance and education;

(f) Monitor conservation or agricultural easements in the sending area;

(g) Receive funding from the township, proceeds of sales of development rights, and donations;

(h) Manage the TDR bank fund described in section 505.708 of the Revised Code;

(i) If directed to do so by the board of township trustees, establish a selling price for development rights it possesses, based on local market forces, and extinguish development rights in its possession in the absence of a buyer in the receiving area.

(F) The establishment of a transfer of development rights program and the designation of specific areas as sending areas or as receiving areas are legislative acts subject to section 519.12 of the Revised Code. All actions undertaken under an established transfer of development rights program are adjudicative actions subject to appeal under Chapter 2506. of the Revised Code.

Sec. 713.16. (A) As used in this section:

(1) "Agricultural easement" and "conservation easement" have the same meanings as in section 5301.67 of the Revised Code, except that the easement also shall be a permanent easement granted under section 5301.68 of the Revised Code and transferred to an entity specified in section 5301.69 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Development right" means a specified right assigned to a parcel of property in a sending area that may be transferred from that property for application and use on property located in a designated receiving area. "Development right" includes any of the following:

(a) A variation in the height, bulk, number of stories, and size of buildings, in the density of population, or in the square footage of buildings or other structures allowed in a receiving area under applicable zoning or subdivision regulations;

(b) A variation in the number of parking spaces required in a receiving area under applicable building or parking space regulations;

(c) A variation in the size of lots, set-back building lines, or the size of yards and courts of buildings and other structures, in percentages of lot areas that may be occupied by buildings and other structures, or in open space requirements allowed in a receiving area under applicable zoning or subdivision regulations;

(d) A variation in utility service tap-in fees or other utility fees and charges charged in a receiving area by a political subdivision;

(e) A variation in open space requirements in local laws applicable to a receiving area;

(f) Any other right that varies the density or intensity of development in a receiving area or that makes development in a receiving area economically beneficial.

(3) "Receiving area" means an area of land that is within the territory of one or more political subdivisions participating in a joint transfer of development rights program where development rights transferred from a sending area may be applied and used.

(4) "Sending area" means an area of land that is within the territory of one or more political subdivisions participating in a joint transfer of development rights program from which assigned development rights can be transferred for use in a receiving area.

(B) The legislative authority of one or more municipal corporations, the board of county commissioners of one or more counties, and the board of township trustees of one or more townships may enter into a joint agreement to create a joint transfer of development rights program whereby the owner of real property in a designated sending area may agree to have the owner's property placed in an agricultural or conservation easement in exchange for an assignment of development rights to that property that the owner may transfer for application and use on real property in a designated receiving area. The joint agreement shall establish the parameters of the program and the responsibilities of each party to the agreement.

(C) If any sending area or receiving area designated in a joint transfer of development rights program includes unincorporated territory in a township that is not participating in the program and in which no township zoning regulations or county zoning regulations apply, the parties to the joint agreement shall provide written notice to the boards of township trustees in the townships in which that territory is located to inform the townships that a joint transfer of development rights program has been created that will affect territory in them.

If any sending area or receiving area designated in the joint transfer of development rights program includes unincorporated territory in which township zoning regulations apply, and that township is not a political subdivision participating in the program, before the program can be implemented in that territory, a majority of the board of township trustees of that township must adopt a resolution approving the program in that territory.

(D) If a joint transfer of development rights program agreement cannot be implemented without changes to the laws of a party to the agreement, including changes to a zoning code, that party may make those changes in accordance with the laws of that political subdivision if initiated by its legislative authority. Nothing in the agreement, however, can compel such changes. If zoning regulations are changed in order to implement the program, those regulations need not be uniform for each class or type of building or other structure or for each use of property throughout any sending or receiving area, but may vary in order to accommodate development and provide adequate incentives to encourage participation in the program.

(E) A joint transfer of development rights program agreement shall not be in derogation of the powers granted to municipal corporations by Article XVIII of the Ohio Constitution or any other provisions of the Ohio Constitution or of a municipal charter. A joint transfer of development rights program agreement entered into under this section is in addition to any other agreements authorized by law between municipal corporations and counties or between municipal corporations and townships.

Sec. 713.17. (A) One of the parties to a joint transfer of development rights agreement entered into under section 713.16 of the Revised Code shall establish a separate fund in its treasury that is designated as a TDR bank fund. The fund shall consist of all moneys received in connection with the joint transfer of development rights program. Expenditures from the fund shall be made only as provided in the joint agreement establishing the program.

(B)(1) The agreement establishing a joint transfer of development rights program shall provide for a transfer of development rights bank, to be known as a TDR bank. The TDR bank shall be managed by a TDR bank advisory board, which may be a municipal, county, or regional planning commission, a zoning commission, a board of zoning appeals, or a combination of those entities, or it may be a newly created, appointed board configured in any manner designated in the agreement.

(2) A TDR bank, through the TDR bank advisory board, shall make recommendations to the legislative authorities of the parties to the joint agreement on the purchase and sale of development rights under the program, and may do any or all of the following:

(a) Oversee development and implementation of the joint transfer of development rights program;

(b) Purchase development rights, and sell or convey any development rights it possesses, as directed jointly by the parties to the joint agreement;

(c) Hold indefinitely any development rights it possesses;

(d) Receive donations of development rights;

(e) Facilitate transactions between property owners in sending and receiving areas through technical assistance and education;

(f) Monitor conservation or agricultural easements in the sending area;

(g) Receive funding from the parties to the joint agreement, proceeds of sales of development rights, and donations;

(h) Manage the TDR bank fund;

(i) If directed to do so by the parties to the agreement acting jointly, establish a selling price for development rights it possesses, based on local market forces, and extinguish development rights in its possession in the absence of a buyer in the receiving area.