|
The Connecticut Agriculture Viability Grants program has awarded nearly $1 million in matching funds for a variety of projects, including on-farm improvements, municipal planning for agriculture, and marketing strategies to promote the sale of CT-Grown products. The latest round of grants will go to 13 agricultural producers, four non-profit agricultural organizations and 13 municipalities. The Agricultural Viability Grants are funded through the Community Investment Act Account, which also finances farmland and open space preservation, historic restoration, and affordable housing.Through the Working Lands Alliance, we’re working to reverse Governor Rell’s recent budget mitigation proposal that would raid $10 million in funds from the account, including $2.5 million from the Department of Agriculture.
WLA opposes Governor Rell's proposal to raid $12 million from the Community Investment Account in 2010 and 2011. This will have a devastating impact on farmland preservation funding, state program staffing and efficiency, and will eliminate the popular Agriculture Viability Grants program and many services of the CT-Grown marketing program. WLA urges all coalition members to sign up for Email Updates to receive news about this critical effort to protect the Community Investment Act!
For more information:
Download Community Investment Act [PDF]
Download Town-By-Town investments from Community Investment Act [PDF]
 The 2008 legislative session of the Connecticut General Assembly wrapped up with several important gains for farmland protection. Public Act 08-174 doubles the price per-acre that may be paid to landowners participating in the state Farmland Preservation Program, an acknowledgement that the program’s current per-acre cap of $10,000 is not keeping pace with rising farm real estate values. American Farmland Trust and members of the conservation community are pleased with progress made by the Face of Connecticut campaign and look forward to further increases in the state's financial commitment to our natural landscapes, historic buildings and urban redevelopment.
Legislators in Connecticut are considering the use of conservation tax credits to encourage land protection. House Bill 5137 would make landowners eligible for a tax credit worth 50 percent of the value of a donated conservation easement on farm or forest land. Already adopted in 11 states, the concept of state conservation tax credits is gaining ground as an additional tool in the land protection portfolio.
"State Conservation Tax Credits: Impact and Analysis" by Conservation Resource Center, available at the Farmland Information Center.
In a ceremony at the Blue Hills Orchard in Wallingford, Governor M. Jodi Rell signed a bill that would provide $5 million every six months over the next two years for the state's Farmland Preservation Program, provided the State Bonding Commission approves the funding. Public Act 07-162 also creates a 12-member Farmland Preservation Advisory Board to help the state bolster its efforts to preserve farmland. Membership on the board will include up to seven farmers or farm organization representatives. In the ceremony, Governor Rell noted that the goal of the state’s Farmland Preservation Program is to preserve 130,000 acres, but Connecticut is still about 100,000 acres short of that goal. She also cited Maryland, Delaware and Massachusetts as neighboring states where higher investments along with advisory boards have led to more farmland preserved.
Rapid housing development and an increasingly fragmented agricultural industry have left many communities uncertain about how to ensure the long-term viability of farming. New neighbor complaints about the sights, sounds and smells of agriculture are on the rise, and farm businesses are increasingly challenged by restrictive zoning, changing definitions of agriculture and misunderstandings about agricultural operations. Read more
This year’s legislative session produced a big victory for AFT and farmland protection advocates in Connecticut. Working closely with key stakeholders, AFT helped to write legislation establishing a $30 deed recording fee that finances farmland protection, historic preservation and open space acquisition. The new legislation will generate an estimated $5 million annually for the state’s Farmland Preservation Program. AFT also worked with partners to increase bond funding for the program, helping to garner $18 million for the program over the next two years.
 Return to Connecticut Main Page
|
Agriculture Viability Grant Awards Announced but Funding Source in Jeopardy 