Senate hearing focuses on raising conservation‑use acreage cap for family farm entities; fiscal note pending

Senator Watson presented SB 45 (LC 442941) and the related constitutional enabling resolution SR 56 (LC 442940), measures aimed at updating Georgia’s conservation‑use program to reflect modern family farming structures.

Watson told the committee the current law limits a single individual to a 2,000‑acre maximum for conservation use; when farms exceed that limit some owners transfer title into spouses’ or children’s names to retain the tax treatment. He said the bill would “clean that up” by allowing family farm entities to hold more acres without losing conservation‑use treatment, and described the change as designed to help family farms grow while maintaining the program’s intent.

Representatives of agricultural organizations voiced support. A Georgia Agribusiness Council representative said his organization was “fully supportive”; Adam Bellflower of the Georgia Farm Bureau said the bill would most affect row‑crop producers and that the Farm Bureau supported the concept. The Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) said it is still researching fiscal impacts and which corporate entities might qualify and thus had no formal position at the hearing.

Committee members probed the bill’s limits and potential exposure to corporate use. Senator Beach asked whether corporations could benefit; Watson and others pointed to bill text that repeatedly uses the term “family owned farm entity” and said the language intends to restrict eligibility to family farm entities, not outside corporations. Several senators emphasized the importance of protecting family farms and encouraging entry by younger farmers.

The committee did not vote on the bill; members requested a fiscal note before further consideration. Witnesses and senators repeatedly noted a need to understand local fiscal impacts and which entities would qualify under the bill’s definitions.