LAND CONSERVATION NEWS 6/18/14
Issue 239
House Ways and Means Committee passes H.R. 2807 to make land conservation enhanced
incentives permanent: With all Republicans voting in favor, the Committee passed the bill 23 to
14. The House leadership (Reps. Boehner, Cantor and McCarthy) will decide if and when the bill
comes to the floor for a vote or whether it will be put in a package with other charitable
provisions (IRA charitable rollover and enhanced deductions for donations of food to food
banks). The leadership generally listens to their members so please speak to your representative
about bringing the bill to the floor.
Bill would allow land trusts to hold Forest Legacy lands: Since 1990, the Forest Legacy
Program has conserved millions of acres of forest, in perpetuity, by directing federal monies into
state-held conservation easements on private forestland. A new and potentially historic piece of
legislation aims to facilitate a change in this program: the Forest Legacy Management Flexibility
Act (H.R. 4551). Sponsored by Rep. Chris Gibson (R-NY) and Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA).
H.R. 4551 simply allows private organizations, such as land trusts, the ability to hold
conservation easements that are funded by Forest Legacy Program dollars. This action – which
will greatly expand accessibility to FLP funding – will be of tremendous benefit to the entire
private forestland community, simultaneously addressing concerns of undesired government
involvement on the part of landowners, and burdensome monitoring requirements on the part of
the states. Allowing small organizations to hold the easements will be good for establishing
greater trust between landowners and the Program, and will release much of the management
requirements of the Program from the states to these organizations, which are often better
acquainted with local lands and hence better suited as easement holders.
Recently, the bill has been referred to House committees and sponsors are seeking cosponsorship from other Representatives in the House. This marks the first time the bill has been
presented as a stand-alone piece of legislation. It is an outstanding accomplishment the Pacific
Forest Trust, the Georgia Land Trust, the Georgia Land Conservation Center and many others
working in private forestland conservation, and represents an enormous opportunity for us
moving forward with sensible federal forest conservation policies. Of course, the effort to allow
third parties to hold conservation easements that receive funding from the Forest Legacy
Program is not over. H.R. 4551 still faces challenges to its support and eventual passage that will
require more enthusiastic determination on the part of people like us. You are encouraged to
reach out to your congressional representative, especially if he serves on the Agriculture and
Natural Resources committees (Reps. Broun, Austin Scott and David Scott). Request their
support in this simple, cost-free alteration to the existing Forest Legacy Program legislation.
Changes
After ten years with the Central Savannah River Land Trust, Hazel Langrall Cook is
taking a sabbatical. A replacement Executive Director will be named shortly.
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Laura Hall has left the Athens Land Trust and has joined the Oconee River Land Trust as
their Land Steward. Laura can be reached at 706-552-3138.
Pierre Howard will retire as President of the Georgia Conservancy at the end of June; he
has served in that position since 2009. His successor will be Robert Ramsey, who is
currently the Conservancy’s Vice President of Development. Prior to joining the Georgia
Conservancy, Robert was the Senior Associate Director of Philanthropy at the Nature
Conservancy of Georgia. He was also a professional fly fishing guide.
Jerry McCollum, retired President and CEO of the Georgia Wildlife Federation, has
agreed to be the chair of the board of the Charles H. Wharton Conservation Center, Inc.
The new non-profit organization seeks to honor Dr. C.H. Wharton (ecologist and author
of The Natural Environments of Georgia) by conserving land in the Tallulah River
watershed, promoting experiential education and supporting scientific research.
Andrew Szwak, Manager of the Land Conservation Program at the Georgia
Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA), is relocating to Chicago in order to be
with his fiancée. He has accepted a position with the accredited land trust, Openlands, as
their Planning & Policy Analyst.
Dates
June 11-12, 2015: Fifth Symposium on Advanced Legal Topics in Land Conservation.
Indianapolis. Get it on your calendar and in your 2015 budget now.
Job Opening
The Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA) is currently seeking a new
manager for the state's Land Conservation Program. If you or anyone you know may be
interested in this position, please review the position description and complete the online
application at http://www.careers.ga.gov/jobsearch/jobdetail.asp?ReqNum=93060220aa.
Land Conservation News is a periodic communication produced by the Georgia Land
Conservation Center for land trust leaders and others who care about the future of open space in
Georgia. To subscribe or to contribute news items, please contact Hans Neuhauser at the Georgia
Land Conservation Center: 706-546-7507 or hans@galandcc.com
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