This text of Iowa § 456A.38 (Lease to beginning farmers program) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.
1.As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
a.“Agricultural land”, “beginning farmer”, and “farming” mean the same as defined in
section 16.58.
b.“Authority” means the same as defined in section 16.1.
c.“Program” means the lease to beginning farmers program as provided in this section.
2.Thedepartmentofnaturalresourcesshallestablishandadministeraleasetobeginning
farmers program. The department shall annually lease agricultural land that it holds or
manages as wildlife habitat in each county to beginning farmers seeking to participate in the
program. The department shall advertise the program in a manner that encourages wide
participation by beginning farmers to lease the agricultural land.
3.The department shall establish annual lease payments for available agri
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1. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
a. “Agricultural land”, “beginning farmer”, and “farming” mean the same as defined in
section 16.58.
b. “Authority” means the same as defined in section 16.1.
c. “Program” means the lease to beginning farmers program as provided in this section.
2. Thedepartmentofnaturalresourcesshallestablishandadministeraleasetobeginning
farmers program. The department shall annually lease agricultural land that it holds or
manages as wildlife habitat in each county to beginning farmers seeking to participate in the
program. The department shall advertise the program in a manner that encourages wide
participation by beginning farmers to lease the agricultural land.
3. The department shall establish annual lease payments for available agricultural land
under the program by using the following criteria:
a. Market factors.
b. Prior leases for the same or comparable agricultural land.
c. The cost of establishment or maintenance of soil conservation practices, if applicable.
d. Other criteria established by the department.
4. The department shall execute a lease with a beginning farmer selected to participate in
the program after such person has been certified by the authority as a beginning farmer who
meets the requirements of the authority, which shall be based on section 16.75, subsection 3,
paragraphs “a”, “c”, “f”, and “g”.
5. a. If two or more beginning farmers seek to execute a lease under the program for the
same agricultural land, the department shall select the beginning farmer to participate in the
program by drawing lots.
b. If no beginning farmer seeks to participate in the program, or no beginning farmer
is found qualified to participate in the program, the department shall lease the agricultural
land under another lease program that it administers pursuant to chapter 461A, including as
provided in 571 IAC ch. 21.
6. The department shall establish terms and conditions in the lease for beginning farmers
17 REGULATION AND FUNDING — NATURAL RESOURCES DEPARTMENT, §456A.38
participating in the program. The lease executed by the department under the program shall
at least include all of the following:
a. The number of acres leased. The department shall not lease more than two hundred
forty acres of agricultural land to a beginning farmer for the production of crops. However,
this restriction does not apply to agricultural land leased for grazing livestock.
b. The term of the lease. The term may be based on the use of the agricultural land.
A lease shall not be for more than seven years. A beginning farmer shall not sublease the
agricultural land.
c. The required and permitted uses of the agricultural land during the lease term. The
department may require the establishment of a conservation system, crop rotation, or cover
crop, if appropriate. The department may require that a beginning farmer adopt generally
accepted farming practices or soil conservation practices, so long as such practices are
compatible with the department’s policies related to resource management and outdoor
recreation.
7. At the end of a lease term, a beginning farmer who leased agricultural land under
the program is eligible to be selected again to lease the same agricultural land. However,
the department shall provide a preference to an available beginning farmer who has not
previously participated in the program.
8. The department is not required to lease agricultural land under the program that
it would not otherwise lease for farming. The department may lease agricultural land
for farming under another lease program administered by the department pursuant to its
authority under chapter 461A, including as provided in 571 IAC ch. 21, only after it has
made agricultural land available for lease to all beginning farmers seeking to participate in
the program.
9. The department shall adopt rules necessary to administer this section.