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Committee sends land-bank extension to amendment order after mixed testimony on state land purchases
Summary
House Bill 129, which would extend the land bank holding period from five to ten years, was sent to the fourteenth order for possible amendments after supporters highlighted market timing and conservation benefits while opponents warned of private-land loss and tax-base reductions.
Representative John Vander Waata introduced House Bill 129, a proposal to extend the period that land-sale proceeds may remain in the state's Land Bank from five years to ten years before automatic transfer to the permanent endowment fund.
Supporters, including Heather Eastman of Idaho Business for the Outdoors and Nick Fasiano of the Idaho Wildlife Federation, told the committee the extension gives the state Land Board and Idaho Department of Lands additional time to identify endowment land purchases amid volatile real-estate markets. Eastman, executive director of Idaho Business for the Outdoors, said more than 96% of endowment lands are accessible for recreation and argued the extension would help preserve opportunities for hunting, fishing and outdoor tourism. Eastman testified that "in just the last 10 years, $130,000,000 of land sale proceeds have already transferred out of the land bank" and asserted…
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