King County property tax incentive program promoted to Lake Forest Park residents to protect trees and urban canopy

Drew Epping, the city’s urban forest planner, briefed the joint meeting on King County’s Public Benefit Rating System (PBRS), a county program that offers a property‑tax reduction for private properties that conserve forest land or urban open space.

PBRS operates on a points system. Points are assigned for qualifying resources (size, habitat quality, connectivity and other criteria) and are translated into a reduction of the assessed land value for the protected portion of the property. Drew said reductions start at 50% and can increase to as much as 90% depending on the points earned and the PBRS category.

“As an incentive program through the county to preserve vegetative areas on private property,” Drew explained, “it provides a tax reduction on assessed land value and can help convert private urban forest land into a protected conservation status.” He noted the program’s minimum parcel thresholds: urban open space can qualify at as small as half an acre in some circumstances; forest land designation generally requires larger acreage (4 acres minimum). Drew showed a King County map of current PBRS parcels and an example of a Lake Forest Park property of 2.6 acres in which roughly 2.55 acres participate and the owner received a 70% land‑value reduction for the participating area.

Drew described other local features of the program: multiple adjacent property owners can combine contiguous parcels to qualify; PBRS points favor parcels that protect stream buffers, steep slopes, scenic resources and significant wildlife habitat; some parcels in Lake Forest Park already participate and cluster north of the town center.

Tree Board members discussed outreach and marketing to encourage residents to consider the program. Drew said the county evaluates applications and the city also reviews them before final approval; conservation measures attached to PBRS can include restrictions that run with the land and, if removed, may require repayment of a portion of the prior tax savings (a recapture period was described in general terms).

Why this matters: PBRS creates a market‑based incentive for private landowners to retain canopy and natural areas, which supports urban forest goals and local climate resilience.

What’s next: Tree Board and Climate Action Committee members discussed producing a one‑pager and public outreach at events (market booths), working with King County staff to identify additional parcels that might qualify and coordinating with the city to share materials with residents.