Hawaii County’s system for dedicating land for commercial farm use might get an overhaul.
The County Council Finance Committee discussed a pair of bills Tuesday that together would repeal the current commercial agricultural dedication process and install an updated one with multiple new categories of use.
Bill 44 would establish a July 1 sunset date for the county’s current agricultural dedication program, which allows farmers to have land specified for agricultural use for 10-year periods, during which time the land is assessed based on its commercial agricultural use instead of its market value.
Owners of properties that have been so dedicated will have to apply for an alternative use assessment by July 1, 2024. One of those assessments includes the “community food sustainability use assessment,” also established in Bill 44, which allows for nondedicated lands on which farmers raise food crops to be assessed at 30% market value.
Meanwhile, Bill 43 establishes two new agricultural dedication categories to replace the system abolished by Bill 44.
Those categories include “long-term” commercial agricultural use dedication — largely similar to the existing system, albeit with some additional caveats and exceptions — and “short-term” dedication, which allows ag lessees to have their properties assessed at three times the value of the long-term dedication for up to three years.
“What we want for these bills is a pathway for everyone engaged in commercial agriculture to receive a tax benefit,” said Hamakua Councilwoman Heather Kimball.
South Kona Councilwoman Michelle Galimba, who co-introduced the bills with Kimball, explained that the new system should make the dedication process “more meaningful” while also addressing concerns by farmers about current policies.
For example, she noted that the current program requires that land be used on a continuous and regular basis for agricultural purposes, without taking into account the need for intermittent fallow periods. Bill 43, however, would allow long-term dedicated lots to be fallow for three out of every 10 years of dedication.
Galimba added that the bills also require applicants to submit an agricultural business plan to the Department of Finance in order to be accepted for dedication, although she added that she doesn’t want those plans to be overly complicated so as not to discourage farmers from applying.
The bills generated some discussion among other council members, but no members of the public testified.
Ultimately, the committee voted to postpone the bills until the next committee meeting to make time for further discussion.
Email Michael Brestovansky at mbrestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.