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Congresswoman briefed committee on bill to cap federal conservation easements at 30 years
Summary
A virtual presentation described a federal Landowner Easements Rights Act that would limit future US Fish & Wildlife conservation easements to 30 years and allow landowners to buy back or renegotiate existing perpetual easements; committee members asked about valuation and state coordination.
Congresswoman Fedorchek (attending virtually) outlined legislation she supports to give landowners additional options to renegotiate or buy back federal conservation easements and to limit future easements to 30 years rather than perpetual terms.
She told the committee the bill "would limit all future conservation easements that the US Fish and Wildlife engages in, to 30 years versus the perpetual easements that they currently have, and it would allow landowners to renegotiate or buy back the current easements that they have that are over 30 years or that lack official mapping." That description framed the bill's central features: time-limited future easements and a buyback pathway for some existing easements.
Committee members pressed for details about buyback valuation and process. Staff in the congresswoman's office, Cassie Bowers, said buybacks envisioned in related congressional proposals would be at fair market value but that the congresswoman's office would follow up with the committee on valuation methodology and implementation specifics.
Members also discussed state options to respond to federal actions, property-tax consequences of easements and claims that some historic easement boundaries had been expanded by federal re-interpretation. Lawmakers urged continued coordination with the congressional delegation and with local landowners as federal processes evolve.
What's next: The committee did not vote on any state position but asked staff to track legislative developments and requested follow-up material from the congresswoman's office on buyback mechanics and valuation.
