FISCAL NOTE
FUND(S):
General Revenue Fund, local governments
Sources of Revenue:
General Fund,Other Fund local property tax
Legislation creates:
A New Program
Fiscal Note Summary
Effect this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.
The stated purpose of this bill is to provide tax incentives to nonresidential owners of managed timberland to allow the general public to use the land for recreational purposes. In furtherance of this purpose this bill provides legislative findings.
The revenue impact of this bill cannot be determined because the State Tax Department does not know how many landowners would allow public access to their managed timberland. The maximum increase would be $5.1 million for local governments and $20,000 for the State if all Class III owners did not allow public access. There would be no revenue impact if all Class III owners allowed public access.
There would be no additional administrative costs.
Fiscal Note Detail
| Effect of Proposal |
Fiscal Year |
2007
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
2008
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
Fiscal Year
(Upon Full
Implementation) |
| 1. Estmated Total Cost |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Personal Services |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Current Expenses |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Repairs and Alterations |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Assets |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Other |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| 2. Estimated Total Revenues |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Explanation of above estimates (including long-range effect):
The revenue impact of this bill cannot be determined because the State Tax Department does not know how many landowners would allow public access to their managed timberland. The maximum increase would be $5.1 million for local governments and $20,000 for the State if all Class III owners did not allow public access. There would be no revenue impact if all Class III owners allowed public access.
There would be no additional administrative costs.
Memorandum
The stated purpose of this bill is to provide tax incentives to nonresidential owners of managed timberland to allow the general public to use the land for recreational purposes. In furtherance of this purpose this bill provides legislative findings.
The statutory amendment to which the legislative findings relates is the addition of a provision after the existing requirement for the tax commissioner to promulgate rules for certification as managed timberland for property tax purposes. The proviso states that “no parcels of property, other than parcels on which the owner resides, shall be classified as managed timberland, unless these forest lands are open to public recreational activities, including hunting, fishing, hiking and photography.”Aside from the fact that the proviso is located at the end of the sentence requiring rules, there would seem to be no connection between the rules and this amendment.
Person submitting Fiscal Note: Mark Muchow
Email Address: kpetry@tax.state.wv.us