Tax program catching heat in Albemarle

What is the value of keeping land rural in Albemarle County?
For some, the county is paying too much for its land-use taxation program, which allows landowners to defer hefty amounts of their real-estate tax bill on agricultural and open space land. The Farm Bureau and other rural-area advocates say the tenor of the discussion has changed, as some supervisors and residents are becoming increasingly hostile to a program they say is essential to keeping agricultural and other rural land activities in Albemarle.
They also say the program is a key to keeping the county’s pristine scenic views uncluttered from development.
So, the Farm Bureau and other groups are getting started on a campaign to stress the importance of land-use taxation before organized opposition can mount at Board of Supervisors’ meetings. The bureau is launching a series of television ads in the second half of this month, culminating in a meeting May 1, said the Albemarle Farm Bureau’s president, Carl Tinder.
“Joe citizen is working 9 to 5 to try to pay his mortgage,” Tinder said, explaining that most aren’t necessarily paying attention to county issues. “At the same time, supervisors and staff are trying to figure out a way to stick it to him more. It’s time citizens learn to protect their rights.”
A group called Forever Albemarle formed in October because some believed that supervisors are looking to take away Albemarle residents’ property rights, said Hank Martin, the group’s leader. The group, which Martin says has about 100 members, will be a part of the May 1 session.
Martin said the days have passed when residents could trust their elected representatives to act in their interest. He said he plans to tell residents on May 1 that, “if you want to have a voice, now’s the time to use it.”
About 60 percent of county land is in land-use taxation and $17.8 million was deferred in taxes last year, according to the county finance department. Some supervisors have said they would like to make sure those who are holding land in land-use are not simply waiting for a high-priced bid from a developer. Those with land in the land-use program have to pay five years’ of back taxes if they sell it off; some say that for many high-priced land deals that isn’t enough of a punishment.
Tinder said he understands that it’s a large pot of money the board might look to in tight economic times. But, he said, many people don’t realize that farmers still pay taxes the same as anyone else on their house and the acreage immediately surrounding it. Taxes are only deferred on the farmland, which doesn’t use county services.
“My cows have never got on a school bus,” Tinder said. “That open space, that farmland, is not requiring services. We’re paying more than our fair share.” Tinder and others said the tax deferment program is necessary because without it most farmers couldn’t afford to pay taxes and would have to sell their land.
Supervisor David L. Slutzky disagrees. When a rural landowner bought the land, he paid less because the sale price reflects the longer wait for emergency services, rural roads and other “dis-amenities,” Slutzky said.
“I think that the land-use program in its current form is a bad idea,” Slutzky said. “The cows-don’t-go-to-school position is bogus economics.” Slutzky said he would limit the program to those who put their land in conservation easement — a more permanent protection of open space.
Board Chairman Kenneth C. Boyd said he doesn’t think the land-use program needs another look, and doesn’t want to move forward on discussions of re-evaluating the program if there aren’t the four necessary votes to do so. Moving forward without the votes, he said, would create an unnecessary “firestorm in the community.”
“If there’s not four votes on our board, we shouldn’t drag our community through a huge, gut-wrenching discussion,” Boyd said.