County Council increases tools for conservation

July 6, 2010

Summary

Tax exempt bonds and creation of Local Conservation Authority could help preserve open space

Story

The Metropolitan King County Council today began to expand the available tools for preserving open space with its unanimous adoption of motions supporting consideration by Congress of tax exempt status for Conservation Bonds and study of the potential for creation of a Local Conservation Authority.

“Preserving our green space is a high priority for the people living in this lush region, yet the availability of public money for conservation is limited, so we must seek out creative approaches to protect our open space without overburdening taxpayers,” said Councilmember Larry Phillips, sponsor of the motions and Chair of the Environment and Transportation Committee. “I am pleased to partner with Cascade Land Conservancy advocating for and exploring innovative ways to fund conservation.”

“Approving the new tool of tax-exempt forest conservation bonds will greatly benefit our region immediately and for years to come by bolstering local conservation efforts and by keeping jobs in our communities,” said Council Chair Bob Ferguson. “Congress should act quickly to pass this legislation.”

At the request of Councilmember Phillips, representatives of the Cascade Land Conservancy (CLC) attended a recent Environment and Transportation Committee meeting to present strategies for achieving the organization’s goal of 1.3 million acres of conserved landscapes in the Central Puget Sound region. Funding available for purchasing conservation lands, through public agencies or philanthropic sources, are estimated to be far short of the dollar values of those lands at market prices. That shortfall has led the CLC to explore alternative mechanisms for achieving conservation of undeveloped lands, particularly those that are managed as working forests. CLC staff presented two strategies: Conservation Forestry Bonds and Local Conservation Authority.

The proposed Community Forestry Conservation Act, introduced by Senator Patty Murray and others in July 2009, provides for tax-exempt status for qualified forest conservation bonds under the Internal Revenue Code. Motion 2010-0342 urges Congress to act favorably upon the pending Community Forestry Conservation Act.


Local Conservation Authorities (“LCA”) are bodies that are created by local governments specifically for conservation purposes. In concept, LCAs are comparable to Public Development Authorities, except that they would be tailored specifically for purposes of acquiring open space and working lands. Included among their tools would be mechanisms such as tax exempt bonds issued for the purpose of acquisition of working resource lands, with repayment through revenue generated by conservation-appropriate timber harvest activities. Ordinance 2010-0359 calls for a study by the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, in cooperation with CLC, to assess the potential for creation of a LCA.


The adopted legislation advances the Council’s priority of Environmental Sustainability.