UT
Utah House Bill HB0559

Utah 2025 Regular Session

Utah House Bill HB0559 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
OldNewDifferences
11 02-26 12:30 H.B. 559
22 1
33 Local Agritourism Ordinance Amendments
44 2025 GENERAL SESSION
55 STATE OF UTAH
66 Chief Sponsor: Doug Owens
77 Senate Sponsor:
88 2
99
1010 3
1111 LONG TITLE
1212 4
1313 General Description:
1414 5
1515 This bill enacts provisions related to municipal and county regulation of agritourism
1616 6
1717 activities.
1818 7
1919 Highlighted Provisions:
2020 8
2121 This bill:
2222 9
2323 ▸ defines terms; and
2424 10
2525 ▸ requires each municipality and county to enact an ordinance that:
2626 11
2727 ● specifies which agritourism activities are permitted or restricted on an agricultural
2828 12
2929 enterprise; and
3030 13
3131 ● describes regulations that apply to various agritourism activities.
3232 14
3333 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
3434 15
3535 None
3636 16
3737 Other Special Clauses:
3838 17
3939 None
4040 18
4141 Utah Code Sections Affected:
4242 19
4343 ENACTS:
4444 20
4545 10-9a-541, Utah Code Annotated 1953
4646 21
4747 17-27a-536, Utah Code Annotated 1953
4848 22
4949
5050 23
5151 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
5252 24
5353 Section 1. Section 10-9a-541 is enacted to read:
5454 25
5555 10-9a-541 . Agritourism activities.
5656 26
5757 (1) As used in this section:
5858 27
5959 (a) "Agricultural arts center" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
6060 28
6161 agricultural enterprise as a venue for artistic expression through various art forms,
6262 29
6363 including visual art, literature, music, theater, film, or dance.
6464 30
6565 (b) "Agricultural enterprise" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78B-4-512.
6666 H.B. 559 H.B. 559 02-26 12:30
6767 31
6868 (c) "Agritourism" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78B-4-512.
6969 32
7070 (d) "Agritourism activity" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78B-4-512.
7171 33
7272 (e) "Dude ranch" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
7373 34
7474 enterprise as a commercial vacation ranch operation that provides activities related to
7575 35
7676 a ranch lifestyle, including camping, horseback riding, or wrangling, and which may
7777 36
7878 offer short-term overnight rental accommodations for guests.
7979 37
8080 (f) "Event venue rental" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
8181 38
8282 agricultural enterprise as a venue where an individual can rent space to host an event.
8383 39
8484 (g) "Farmers' market" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
8585 40
8686 enterprise as a venue where multiple individuals may sell agricultural products.
8787 41
8888 (h) "Glamorous camping" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
8989 42
9090 agricultural enterprise as a venue where individuals can rent fully furnished tents or
9191 43
9292 cabins on a nightly basis.
9393 44
9494 (i) "Health farm" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
9595 45
9696 enterprise as a venue for health and wellness education, exercise programs, or
9797 46
9898 nutritional guidance.
9999 47
100100 (j) "Hunting preserve" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
101101 48
102102 enterprise as a venue where an individual or group can pay a fee to hunt, with
103103 49
104104 approval from the appropriate local, state, or federal agencies.
105105 50
106106 (k) "Lodging house" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
107107 51
108108 enterprise as a venue that provides short-term overnight rental accommodations in a
109109 52
110110 building where no cooking facilities are provided in individual rooms.
111111 53
112112 (l) "Market" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural enterprise
113113 54
114114 as a venue where:
115115 55
116116 (i) at least one product from the agricultural enterprise is continuously offered for
117117 56
118118 sale, either in the product's original form or incorporated into another product; and
119119 57
120120 (ii) products sold are limited to those typically sold by a grocer.
121121 58
122122 (m) "On-site produce store" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
123123 59
124124 agricultural enterprise as a shop operated by the owner or manager of the agricultural
125125 60
126126 enterprise, at which sales are limited to agricultural products and at least one of the
127127 61
128128 products is produced on the agricultural enterprise.
129129 62
130130 (n) "Petting zoo" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
131131 63
132132 enterprise as a venue where an individual can interact with farm animals in a
133133 64
134134 supervised enclosure, and which may offer animal rides.
135135 - 2 - 02-26 12:30 H.B. 559
136136 65
137137 (o) "Rental garden" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
138138 66
139139 enterprise as a venue where an individual can lease designated plots of land to grow
140140 67
141141 plants.
142142 68
143143 (2) Each municipality shall enact a new agritourism ordinance, or amend an existing
144144 69
145145 agritourism ordinance:
146146 70
147147 (a) to include:
148148 71
149149 (i) a clear definition of agritourism;
150150 72
151151 (ii) a statement of the ordinance's purpose and intent;
152152 73
153153 (iii) a comprehensive list identifying agritourism activities that are permitted,
154154 74
155155 prohibited, or conditional on an agricultural enterprise; and
156156 75
157157 (iv) regulations that apply to each permitted agritourism activity; and
158158 76
159159 (b) by:
160160 77
161161 (i) revising any existing ordinance governing agritourism activities to comply with
162162 78
163163 this section;
164164 79
165165 (ii) ensuring that the new or revised agritourism ordinance does not impose stricter
166166 80
167167 limitations on existing agricultural enterprises than those imposed by existing
168168 81
169169 municipal regulations;
170170 82
171171 (iii) allowing an agritourism activity that is already a permitted use to continue under
172172 83
173173 the regulations in effect before the agritourism ordinance is amended in
174174 84
175175 compliance with this section; and
176176 85
177177 (iv) applying new regulations only to agritourism activities that become permitted
178178 86
179179 uses after the effective date of the new or amended agritourism ordinance.
180180 87
181181 (3) Each list described in Subsection (2)(c) shall:
182182 88
183183 (a) designate each of the following agritourism activities as a permitted use on an
184184 89
185185 agricultural enterprise of at least one acre:
186186 90
187187 (i) an agricultural enterprise tour;
188188 91
189189 (ii) an agricultural-themed day camp;
190190 92
191191 (iii) an educational class;
192192 93
193193 (iv) an event venue rental;
194194 94
195195 (v) a greenhouse;
196196 95
197197 (vi) a market;
198198 96
199199 (vii) a nursery;
200200 97
201201 (viii) an on-site produce store;
202202 98
203203 (ix) a petting zoo;
204204 - 3 - H.B. 559 02-26 12:30
205205 99
206206 (x) a rental garden;
207207 100
208208 (xi) a seasonal amusement, including a haunted house or corn maze; and
209209 101
210210 (xii) a you-pick operation, including an orchard or pumpkin patch; and
211211 102
212212 (b) classify each of the following agritourism activities as a permitted, prohibited, or
213213 103
214214 conditional use:
215215 104
216216 (i) an agricultural arts center;
217217 105
218218 (ii) agricultural product processing and packaging;
219219 106
220220 (iii) a conference or education center;
221221 107
222222 (iv) a dude ranch;
223223 108
224224 (v) an eating establishment, including a bakery or restaurant;
225225 109
226226 (vi) a farmers' market;
227227 110
228228 (vii) fee fishing;
229229 111
230230 (viii) glamorous camping;
231231 112
232232 (ix) a health farm;
233233 113
234234 (x) a hunting preserve;
235235 114
236236 (xi) a lodging house;
237237 115
238238 (xii) a museum;
239239 116
240240 (xiii) recreational vehicle camping;
241241 117
242242 (xiv) a supervised ride, including a sleigh, wagon, or hayride; and
243243 118
244244 (xv) a venue for social activities.
245245 119
246246 (4) Nothing in this section prevents a municipality from:
247247 120
248248 (a) permitting an agritourism activity described in Subsection (3)(a) on an agricultural
249249 121
250250 enterprise of less than one acre;
251251 122
252252 (b) establishing requirements for:
253253 123
254254 (i) setback, proximity, or operating parameters for an agritourism activity; or
255255 124
256256 (ii) minimum or maximum acreage, except that minimum acreage may not be more
257257 125
258258 than one acre for an activity described in Subsection (3)(a);
259259 126
260260 (c) requiring an owner of an agricultural enterprise engaged in an agritourism activity to
261261 127
262262 comply with local zoning and land use regulations, including noise ordinances,
263263 128
264264 parking regulations, operating hours, and lighting regulations;
265265 129
266266 (d) requiring a special event or temporary use permit for an agritourism activity; or
267267 130
268268 (e) requiring an agricultural enterprise engaged in an agritourism activity to comply with
269269 131
270270 business licensing, health department permitting, fire safety inspections, or other
271271 132
272272 applicable permit or inspection requirements.
273273 - 4 - 02-26 12:30 H.B. 559
274274 133
275275 Section 2. Section 17-27a-536 is enacted to read:
276276 134
277277 17-27a-536 . Agritourism activities.
278278 135
279279 (1) As used in this section:
280280 136
281281 (a) "Agricultural arts center" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
282282 137
283283 agricultural enterprise as a venue for artistic expression through various art forms,
284284 138
285285 including visual art, literature, music, theater, film, or dance.
286286 139
287287 (b) "Agricultural enterprise" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78B-4-512.
288288 140
289289 (c) "Agritourism" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78B-4-512.
290290 141
291291 (d) "Agritourism activity" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78B-4-512.
292292 142
293293 (e) "Dude ranch" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
294294 143
295295 enterprise as a commercial vacation ranch operation that provides activities related to
296296 144
297297 a ranch lifestyle, including camping, horseback riding, or wrangling, and which may
298298 145
299299 offer short-term overnight rental accommodations for guests.
300300 146
301301 (f) "Event venue rental" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
302302 147
303303 agricultural enterprise as a venue where an individual can rent space to host an event.
304304 148
305305 (g) "Farmers' market" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
306306 149
307307 enterprise as a venue where multiple individuals may sell agricultural products.
308308 150
309309 (h) "Glamorous camping" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
310310 151
311311 agricultural enterprise as a venue where individuals can rent fully furnished tents or
312312 152
313313 cabins on a nightly basis.
314314 153
315315 (i) "Health farm" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
316316 154
317317 enterprise as a venue for health and wellness education, exercise programs, or
318318 155
319319 nutritional guidance.
320320 156
321321 (j) "Hunting preserve" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
322322 157
323323 enterprise as a venue where an individual or group can pay a fee to hunt, with
324324 158
325325 approval from the appropriate local, state, or federal agencies.
326326 159
327327 (k) "Lodging house" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
328328 160
329329 enterprise as a venue that provides short-term overnight rental accommodations in a
330330 161
331331 building where no cooking facilities are provided in individual rooms.
332332 162
333333 (l) "Market" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural enterprise
334334 163
335335 as a venue where:
336336 164
337337 (i) at least one product from the agricultural enterprise is continuously offered for
338338 165
339339 sale, either in the product's original form or incorporated into another product; and
340340 166
341341 (ii) products sold are limited to those typically sold by a grocer.
342342 - 5 - H.B. 559 02-26 12:30
343343 167
344344 (m) "On-site produce store" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an
345345 168
346346 agricultural enterprise as a shop operated by the owner or manager of the agricultural
347347 169
348348 enterprise, at which sales are limited to agricultural products and at least one of the
349349 170
350350 products is produced on the agricultural enterprise.
351351 171
352352 (n) "Petting zoo" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
353353 172
354354 enterprise as a venue where an individual can interact with farm animals in a
355355 173
356356 supervised enclosure, and which may offer animal rides.
357357 174
358358 (o) "Rental garden" means an agritourism activity involving the use of an agricultural
359359 175
360360 enterprise as a venue where an individual can lease designated plots of land to grow
361361 176
362362 plants.
363363 177
364364 (2) Each county shall enact a new agritourism ordinance, or amend an existing agritourism
365365 178
366366 ordinance:
367367 179
368368 (a) to include:
369369 180
370370 (i) a clear definition of agritourism;
371371 181
372372 (ii) a statement of the ordinance's purpose and intent;
373373 182
374374 (iii) a comprehensive list identifying agritourism activities that are permitted,
375375 183
376376 prohibited, or conditional on an agricultural enterprise; and
377377 184
378378 (iv) regulations that apply to each permitted agritourism activity; and
379379 185
380380 (b) by:
381381 186
382382 (i) revising any existing ordinance governing agritourism activities to comply with
383383 187
384384 this section;
385385 188
386386 (ii) ensuring that the new or revised agritourism ordinance does not impose stricter
387387 189
388388 limitations on existing agricultural enterprises than those imposed by existing
389389 190
390390 county regulations;
391391 191
392392 (iii) allowing an agritourism activity that is already a permitted use to continue under
393393 192
394394 the regulations in effect before the agritourism ordinance is amended in
395395 193
396396 compliance with this section; and
397397 194
398398 (iv) applying new regulations only to agritourism activities that become permitted
399399 195
400400 uses after the effective date of the new or amended agritourism ordinance.
401401 196
402402 (3) Each list described in Subsection (2)(c) shall:
403403 197
404404 (a) designate each of the following agritourism activities as a permitted use on an
405405 198
406406 agricultural enterprise of at least one acre:
407407 199
408408 (i) an agricultural enterprise tour;
409409 200
410410 (ii) an agricultural-themed day camp;
411411 - 6 - 02-26 12:30 H.B. 559
412412 201
413413 (iii) an educational class;
414414 202
415415 (iv) an event venue rental;
416416 203
417417 (v) a greenhouse;
418418 204
419419 (vi) a market;
420420 205
421421 (vii) a nursery;
422422 206
423423 (viii) an on-site produce store;
424424 207
425425 (ix) a petting zoo;
426426 208
427427 (x) a rental garden;
428428 209
429429 (xi) a seasonal amusement, including a haunted house or corn maze; and
430430 210
431431 (xii) a you-pick operation, including an orchard or pumpkin patch; and
432432 211
433433 (b) classify each of the following agritourism activities as a permitted, prohibited, or
434434 212
435435 conditional use:
436436 213
437437 (i) an agricultural arts center;
438438 214
439439 (ii) agricultural product processing and packaging;
440440 215
441441 (iii) a conference or education center;
442442 216
443443 (iv) a dude ranch;
444444 217
445445 (v) an eating establishment, including a bakery or restaurant;
446446 218
447447 (vi) a farmers' market;
448448 219
449449 (vii) fee fishing;
450450 220
451451 (viii) glamorous camping;
452452 221
453453 (ix) a health farm;
454454 222
455455 (x) a hunting preserve;
456456 223
457457 (xi) a lodging house;
458458 224
459459 (xii) a museum;
460460 225
461461 (xiii) recreational vehicle camping;
462462 226
463463 (xiv) a supervised ride, including a sleigh, wagon, or hayride; and
464464 227
465465 (xv) a venue for social activities.
466466 228
467467 (4) Nothing in this section prevents a county from:
468468 229
469469 (a) permitting an agritourism activity described in Subsection (3)(a) on an agricultural
470470 230
471471 enterprise of less than one acre;
472472 231
473473 (b) establishing requirements for:
474474 232
475475 (i) setback, proximity, or operating parameters for an agritourism activity; or
476476 233
477477 (ii) minimum or maximum acreage, except that minimum acreage may not be more
478478 234
479479 than one acre for an activity described in Subsection (3)(a);
480480 - 7 - H.B. 559 02-26 12:30
481481 235
482482 (c) requiring an owner of an agricultural enterprise engaged in an agritourism activity to
483483 236
484484 comply with local zoning and land use regulations, including noise ordinances,
485485 237
486486 parking regulations, operating hours, and lighting regulations;
487487 238
488488 (d) requiring a special event or temporary use permit for an agritourism activity; or
489489 239
490490 (e) requiring an agricultural enterprise engaged in an agritourism activity to comply with
491491 240
492492 business licensing, health department permitting, fire safety inspections, or other
493493 241
494494 applicable permit or inspection requirements.
495495 242
496496 Section 3. Effective Date.
497497 243
498498 This bill takes effect on May 7, 2025.
499499 - 8 -