BIL 218 Draft 01 2014-2016 - Laserfiche WebLink

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(3) The petition shall be filed with the director by September 1 of any calendar year and shall be either approved or denied by December 15 of that same year. If approved, dedication shall be effective on July 1 of the following tax year. (4) The petition for short term commercial agricultural use dedication must be signed by all owners of the land for which the dedication is sought. (5) For the purposes of this section, a recorded lessee of the land with a term of three or more years remaining from the date of the petition and who is responsible for payment of the real property tax shall also be deemed an owner of the land. (6) Action by director on petition. (A) Upon receipt of a petition, the director shall make a finding of fact as to whether the land in the petition area is reasonably well suited for the intended use. The finding shall include and be based upon the productivity ratings of the land in those uses for which it is best suited, a study of the ownership, size of operating unit, the present use of surrounding similar lands, and other criteria as may be appropriate. (B) The director shall also make a finding of fact as to whether the intended use is in conflict with the overall development plan of the State and County; provided that for lands that are not classified by County zoning district regulations as agricultural, residential and agricultural, family agricultural, intensive agricultural, or agricultural project district, the director shall make further findings respecting the economic feasibility of the intended use of the land. (C) If all findings are favorable, the director shall approve the petition and declare the land to be dedicated as described within the petition. (D) In order to place prospective buyers on notice of the rollback liability, the petitioner shall record the dedication in accordance with the procedures of the bureau of conveyances within ninety days of notice of approval. (e) Approval by the director of the petition to dedicate shall constitute a forfeiture on the part of the owner of any right to change the use of the land to a use other than short term commercial agriculture for at least three years, unless otherwise provided by this chapter, subject to cancellation or renewal as follows: (1) At least one hundred eighty days prior to any cancellation or termination, the department shall notify the owner by mail of such cancellation or termination. The owner may apply for renewal of the dedication by filing an application with the director on or before September 1 of the last year of dedication. The renewal petition shall, in all respects, be processed similarly to an original petition. Upon approval by the director of succeeding dedications, the property shall continue to be assessed in accordance with the provisions of the dedication. 5