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Lawmakers debate farmland-protection fund; $250,000 compromise not added to 2026 budget
Summary
Legislators discussed a $250,000 compromise to seed a farmland-protection fund to be paid from reassessment-driven revenue when agricultural land is converted, but concluded the line item is not in the 2026 budget and will be revisited in January.
Legislators debated how to fund a newly passed farmland-protection resolution and whether to include $250,000 in the 2026 budget to seed the fund.
"The 250,000 we came up with as a compromise because the original intent of the law was to fund it with the increase of assessment from changing land from ag land to something else," Legislator Kelly said, explaining the working group's approach to using reassessment-driven revenue rather than a direct county gift.
The board discussed that several reassessments are already underway and that increased assessment revenue could fund the initiative over time, but members noted they do not control town assessors and cannot guarantee the revenue. County counsel and staff confirmed the fund exists as a reserve account in the budget structure but that the specific $250,000 line item is not currently funded in the 2026 operating budget.
Because the resolution as originally worded had suggested it would "pay for itself" through reassessments, members discussed whether to place the $250,000 line in the 2026 budget or to defer to January so the board could create a proper cost center and confirm revenue sources. The board agreed to revisit the farmland-protection funding in January rather than add the appropriation now.
Next steps: staff will identify the appropriate budget line and, if warranted, bring an amendment or resolution in January to fund the farmland-protection line. The Legislature did not include the $250,000 explicitly in the adopted 2026 budget at this meeting.
