Legislature(2001 - 2002)
04/19/2002 03:32 PM Senate RES
Audio | Topic |
---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
CSHB 358(CRA)-EXEMPTION FROM PROPERTY TAX: TIMBER CHAIRMAN TORGERSON announced CSHB 358(CRA) to be up for consideration. REPRESENTATIVE CHENAULT, sponsor, said that HB 358 gives municipalities an additional tool to lower the threat of wild fires on the spruce bark beetle killed forest land by giving the municipalities the option of raising property taxes on roads or other property improvements that facilitate the removal of the beetle killed timber. The Kenai Peninsula has about 2.2 million acres of timberland and of that a little over 1 million acres are infested with the spruce bark beetle. These areas have been identified as a high fire threat with limited access to firefighting resources. He said that the Kenai Peninsula Borough tried to adopt a property tax and other plans as part of a beetle mitigation effort, but it was blocked when borough attorneys found that state law would not allow for such breaks. CSHB 358(CRA) simply makes changes to law that would allow the Kenai Peninsula Borough and other municipalities in a similar situation to protect them without having to take on additional tax liabilities. It does not mandate tax breaks but allows the option. SENATOR ELTON said he was assuming on page 2, line 1, that the municipalities would be the ones to determine what "at risk of being infected by insects" means. REPRESENTATIVE CHENAULT said that was his assumption, also. CHAIRMAN TORGERSON said that the Kenai Borough has a forester on staff, but the Forest Service is also right there. SENATOR ELTON said he was assuming this problem was primarily in the Kenai region. CHAIRMAN TORGERSON added that the Mat-Su area was also infested. SENATOR TAYLOR commented that language on page 1, line 10 says, "The municipality may provide that an exemption for land under this subsection applies only to increases in assessed value that result from the timber harvest." He asked how the assessor in the area would show an increase in value because the timber has been removed. REPRESENTATIVE CHENAULT replied that the increase would occur if the parcel was of such a configuration that they had to build a road into it, for instance. The road would become an improvement. SENATOR TAYLOR said: So, the only tax break anybody is going to get is they're going to pay the same amount of taxes they paid the year before or the year before that and they will not have to pay an increased tax because they improved the property by removing the bad timber. REPRESENTATIVE CHENAULT replied that that was his assessment of it. SENATOR TAYLOR said he wanted it on the record that harvesting timber can improve the value of property. He remarked, "A unique concept that most people don't realize." MR. JEFF JAHNKE, Director, Division of Forestry, Department of Natural Resources (DNR) supported CSHB 358(CRA) and said he would answer any question committee members might have. MR. TIM NAVARRE, Kenai Borough Assembly, said the Assembly supported CSHB 358(CRA) for all the reasons previously stated. SENATOR TAYLOR moved to pass CSHB 358(CRA) from committee with individual recommendations and its zero fiscal note. There were no objections and it was so ordered.
Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
---|