Quality Standards
Excerpt (from Introduction)
Through the land preservation tax credit program under the Land Conservation Incentives Act of 1999, §58.1-510 et seq. of the Code of Virginia (1950), as amended (the “Tax Credit Statute”), the Commonwealth of Virginia offers generous financial incentives to landowners who donate conservation easements (and other interests in land) for conservation purposes in the public interest. The Commonwealth is investing in conservation that will preserve and improve the quality of life of Virginians far into the future. However, for the tax credit program to work over the long term, and to ensure that the public receives the greatest conservation benefit possible from the tax revenues expended, there must be some assurance that the following two elements are present:
- Quality Easements. Donated easements must provide significant benefits to the public. That is, the properties encumbered by donated easements must have significant conservation value and the easements must be drafted to adequately protect those values in perpetuity.
- Proper Valuation. Easements must not be overvalued by donors. The tax credit program is designed to reward a landowner with a credit equal to 40% of the amount by which the easement reduces the fair market value of the landowner’s land (usually referred to as the “value” of the easement). However, the credit exceeds that amount—and provides an unwarranted windfall to the landowner at the public’s expense—when an abusive appraisal is used to exaggerate the value of the donated easement. …
Excerpt Version: February 1, 2008. These Standards are updated from time to time. Please contact Conservation Partners, LLC to make sure you have the most current version of these Standards.
Disclaimer: For informational purposes only. Conservation Partners, LLC does not provide legal or tax advice, and nothing herein is to be considered professional advice of any sort. {Full Disclaimer}