SENATE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY COMMITTEE
STATEMENT TO
SENATE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
SENATE, No. 699
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
DATED: DECEMBER 12, 2024
The Senate Environment and Energy Committee reports favorably
a Senate Committee Substitute for Senate Bill No. 699.
This bill directs the State Agriculture Development Committee
(SADC) to establish a program for the acquisition of development
easements on privately-owned woodlands. The purpose of the
program would be to promote the preservation and stewardship of
lands for agricultural, silvicultural, and horticultural use and
production, and to protect the State's forested lands.
To be eligible for inclusion in the new development easement
program, a woodland would be required to:
(1) be at least 20 acres in size;
(2) be devoted, in whole or in part, to either agricultural production
or the production for sale of tree or forest products; and
(3) for those areas not in agricultural production, be managed by
the landowner in accordance with a forest stewardship plan approved
pursuant to section 3 of P.L.2009, c.256 (C.13:1L-31), a woodland
management plan approved pursuant to section 3 of the "Farmland
Assessment Act of 1964," P.L.1964, c.48 (C.54:4-23.3), or a plan
approved pursuant to the federal Forest Stewardship Program
administered by the United States Forest Service.
The appraisal process for development easements under the
program would be the same as that for farmland under the provisions
of subsection e. of section 8 of P.L.2016, c.12 (C.13:8C-50), which
were recently revised by P.L.2023, c.245. Under the program, the
SADC would be authorized to use constitutionally dedicated
corporation business tax (CBT) revenues to fund the acquisition of
development easements, provided that the use is consistent with the
"Preserve New Jersey Act," P.L.2016, c.12 (C.13:8C-43 et seq.) and
the State Constitution. Grants distributed by the SADC would be
authorized to cover up to 80 percent of the costs of acquisition of a
development easement by a local government unit or nonprofit
organization.