The $5,000 Challenge!
 generous RVLT supporter
who wishes to remain anonymous has offered to match donations (up
to a total of $5,000) to the RVLT’s Designated Fund, managed
by the Lenawee Community Foundation (LCF). Our benefactor is taking
advantage of a new opportunity to fund RVLT activities through the
LCF. The LCF is a local community foundation that supports local non-profits
by permanently investing contributions, and providing a portion of
the earnings to the designated non-profit. Donate today and see your
gift go twice as far. See below.
The RVLT works locally to increase public understanding of the need
for conservation and to help landowners preserve their family lands.
We believe we can help maintain our rural communities through such
voluntary conservation efforts. New income and property tax laws,
discussed on page 2, should encourage more people to consider preserving
the land they care about.
We work in partnership with other organizations to maintain farmland
and natural areas, and to teach people to restore natural areas that
are being overrun by invasive species. We hope you will consider attending
one of the land stewardship workshops discussed in the
Stewardship Workshops Update. These workshops are the foundation
of what we do, and a great opportunity to connect to nature.
The RVLT invites you to become a member or supporter. Reading this
newsletter is a first step toward making a real contribution to the
long-term health of our community. You do not have to own land to
help preserve some of it; your support of the RVLT will help us achieve
our mutual goals. Please consider becoming a member, supporter or
volunteer of the RVLT today. Our success depends on you.
New federal tax incentive for donation of conservation easements
Owners of farmland and natural areas who would like to preserve their
lands now have another reason to consider placing a conservation easement
on their land. A new law expands the federal conservation tax incentive
for conservation easement donations. Family farmers, ranchers, and
other moderate-income landowners can now obtain a significant tax
benefit for making the charitable donation of a conservation easement
by:
 raising the deduction
a landowner can take for donating a conservation easement from 30%
of their income in any year to 50%
allowing qualifying
farmers and ranchers to deduct up to 100% of their income
extending the carry-forward
period for a donor to take tax deductions for a voluntary conservation
agreement from 5 to 15 years.
It is important to note that an appraisal needs to be done to determine
the value of the donation and that this applies only to easements
donated in 2006 and 2007. The land trust community will be working
hard with the new congress to make this change permanent. More information
is available from the Land Trust Alliance (www.lta.org).
New law eliminates “pop-up tax” on conservation
land
A powerful new incentive for private land conservation in Michigan
was signed into law in December by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, eliminating
the “pop-up tax” on the sale or inheritance of land covered
by qualified conservation easements and allowing families to pass
down property without a huge tax bill.
In the past, property taxes on conserved lands, like developed lands,
rose significantly even though their development is permanently limited.
This created a disincentive for landowners to enter into conservation
easements. To afford the higher taxes, new landowners needed the option
of developing the land. The new law, Public Act 446 of 2006, prevents
the taxable value of the conservation property from “popping
up” to the state equalized value (SEV) when it is sold or passed
on to family. This means that both current and future landowners have
a strong incentive to keep the affected lands intact with habitat,
environmental, and scenic benefits.
The result of more than a year of legislative effort by Sen. Michelle
McManus (R-Lake Leelanau) and Rep. David Palsrok (R-Manistee), the
law also eliminates the pop-up tax retroactively for lands that have
been covered by conservation easements since the cap on property taxes
was put in place by Proposal A in 1994.
Residences and buildings on land covered by the law will still be
subject to reassessment to the current SEV, but it gives conservation
property the same tax treatment as protected farmland.
From a Press Release by Heart of the Lakes (www.heartofthelakes.org).
Meet the challenge!
As discussed on page 1, your donation to the RVLT’s Designated
Fund through the Lenawee Community Foundation (LCF) will be matched
by a generous RVLT supporter. Your donation will provide long term
funding for the RVLT and provides you with a state tax credit. RVLT’s
account is managed by the LCF and the interest earned supports RVLT’s
ongoing needs. Individuals, couples, corporations, resident estates
and trusts qualify for the Michigan tax credit when donating to the
RVLT’s Designated Fund with the LCF. For example, married donors,
filing jointly, can receive a 50% tax credit of up to $200 on a gift
of $400 to the RVLT’s Designated Fund. Visit LCF’s web
site www.lenaweecf.com. Make checks payable to the Lenawee Community
Foundation and indicate RVLT Fund on the check; mail to LCF at PO
Box 142, Tecumseh MI 49286.
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