§ 325 — Agricultural protection

§ 325. Agricultural protection. 1. Subject to the availability of\nfunds, a program is hereby established to finance through state\nassistance payments the state share of the costs of locally-led\nagricultural and farmland protection activities. State assistance\npayments for planning activities shall not exceed fifty thousand dollars\nto each county agricultural and farmland protection board or one hundred\nthousand dollars to two such boards applying jointly, and shall not\nexceed fifty percent of the cost of preparing an agricultural and\nfarmland protection plan. State assistance payments for planning\nactivities shall not exceed twenty-five thousand dollars to each\nmunicipality other than a county or fifty thousand dollars to two such\nmunicipalities applying jointly, and shall not exceed seventy-five\npercent of the cost of preparing an agricultural and farmland protection\nplan. A county which has an approved farmland protection plan may after\none hundred twenty months from the date of such approval by the\ncommissioner apply for additional state assistance payments for planning\nactivities related to the updating of their current plan or development\nof a new farmland protection plan. Such additional state assistance\npayments shall not exceed fifty thousand dollars to each county\nagricultural and farmland protection board or one hundred thousand\ndollars to two such boards applying jointly, and shall not exceed fifty\npercent of the cost of preparing an agricultural and farmland protection\nplan. State assistance payments for implementation of approved\nagricultural and farmland protection plans may fund up to seventy-five\npercent of the cost of implementing the county plan or portion of the\nplan for which state assistance payments are requested. State assistance\npayments to such counties shall not exceed seventy-five percent of the\ncost of implementing the local plan or portion of the plan for which\nstate assistance has been requested. Such maximum shall be increased by\na percentage equal to the percentage of the total eligible costs for\nsuch specified projects that are contributed by the owner of the\nagricultural land for which the project is being funded, provided,\nhowever, that in no event shall the total of such state assistance\npayments exceed eighty-seven and one-half percent of such eligible costs\nfor any specified project.\n 2. (a) A county agricultural and farmland protection board, two such\nboards acting jointly, a municipality or two such municipalities acting\njointly shall make application to the commissioner in such manner as the\ncommissioner may prescribe. Application for state assistance payments\nfor planning activities may be made at any time after the county\nagricultural and farmland protection board has formed and has elected a\nchairperson. A county agricultural and farmland protection board may\nmake application for state assistance payments for plan implementation\nat any time after the commissioner has approved a county agricultural\nand farmland protection plan pursuant to section three hundred\ntwenty-four of this article. Application made jointly by two county\nagricultural and farmland protection boards may be made after such\nagricultural and farmland protection plan is approved by each county\npursuant to the provisions of section three hundred twenty-four of this\narticle. State assistance payments to such counties shall not exceed\nseventy-five percent of the cost of implementing the county agricultural\nand farmland protection plan or portion of the plan for which state\nassistance has been requested. The commissioner may require such\ninformation or additional planning as he or she deems necessary to\nevaluate such a request for state assistance.\n (b) Within a county, a municipality which has in place a local\nfarmland protection plan may apply and shall be eligible for\nagricultural protection state assistance payments to implement its plan,\nor a portion of its plan, provided the proposed project is endorsed for\nfunding by the agricultural and farmland protection board for the county\nin which the municipality is located and that any plan developed on or\nafter January first, two thousand six complies with section three\nhundred twenty-four-a of this article. State assistance payments to such\nmunicipalities shall not exceed seventy-five percent of the cost of\nimplementing the local plan or portion of the plan for which state\nassistance has been requested. Such maximum shall be increased by a\npercentage equal to the percentage of the total eligible costs for such\nspecified projects that are contributed by the owner of the agricultural\nland for which the project is being funded; provided, however, that in\nno event shall the total of such state assistance payments exceed\neighty-seven and one-half percent of such eligible costs for any\nspecified project. The commissioner may require such information or\nadditional planning as he or she deems necessary to evaluate such a\nrequest for state assistance.\n (c) A soil and water conservation district may apply and shall be\neligible for agricultural protection state assistance payments to\nimplement a county or municipal agricultural and farmland protection\nplan approved by the commissioner provided that the proposed project is\nendorsed for funding by the county agricultural and farmland protection\nboard for the county in which the proposed project is located. A soil\nand water conservation district, two such soil and water conservation\ndistricts acting jointly, a soil and water conservation district and a\nmunicipality acting jointly, or a soil and water conservation district\nand a not-for-profit conservation organization acting jointly shall make\napplication to the commissioner in such manner as the commissioner may\nprescribe. The proposed project must also be endorsed for funding by the\nmunicipality in which the proposed project is located if the soil and\nwater conservation district is seeking agricultural protection state\nassistance payments to implement an approved municipal agricultural and\nfarmland protection plan. State assistance payments to such soil and\nwater conservation districts shall not exceed seventy-five percent of\nthe cost of implementing the local plan or portion of the plan for which\nstate assistance has been requested. Such maximum shall be increased by\na percentage equal to the percentage of the total eligible costs for\nsuch specified projects that are contributed by the owner of the\nagricultural land for which the project is being funded; provided,\nhowever, that in no event shall the total of such state assistance\npayments exceed eighty-seven and one-half percent of such eligible costs\nfor any specified project. The commissioner may require such information\nor additional planning as he or she deems necessary to evaluate such a\nrequest for state assistance.\n (d) A not-for-profit conservation organization may apply and shall be\neligible for agricultural protection state assistance payments to\nimplement a county or municipal agricultural and farmland protection\nplan approved by the commissioner provided that the proposed project is\nendorsed for funding by the county agricultural and farmland protection\nboard for the county in which the proposed project is located. The\nproposed project must also be endorsed for funding by the municipality\nin which the proposed project is located if the not-for-profit\nconservation organization is seeking agricultural protection state\nassistance payments to implement an approved municipal agricultural and\nfarmland protection plan. State assistance payments to such\nnot-for-profit organizations shall not exceed seventy-five percent of\nthe cost of implementing the local plan or portion of the plan for which\nstate assistance has been requested. Such maximum shall be increased by\na percentage equal to the percentage of the total eligible costs for\nsuch specified projects that are contributed by the owner of the\nagricultural land for which the project is being funded; provided,\nhowever, that in no event shall the total of such state assistance\npayments exceed eighty-seven and one-half percent of such eligible costs\nfor any specified project. The commissioner may require such information\nor additional planning as he or she deems necessary to evaluate such a\nrequest for state assistance.\n (e) In evaluating applications for funding, the commissioner shall\ngive priority to projects intended to preserve viable agricultural land\nas defined in section three hundred one of this chapter; that are in\nareas facing significant development pressure; and that serve as a\nbuffer for a significant natural public resource containing important\necosystem or habitat characteristics.\n (f) In evaluating applications for funding, the commissioner shall\nconsider whether future physical climate risk due to sea level rise,\nand/or storm surges and/or flooding, based on available data predicting\nthe likelihood of future extreme weather events, including hazard risk\nanalysis data if applicable, has been considered.\n (g) In evaluating applications for funding, projects for protecting\nagricultural land that include farmer-purchaser farmland protection\nagreements are eligible for state assistance payments.\n 3. Upon receipt of a request for state assistance, the commissioner\nshall review the request, consult with the advisory council on\nagriculture and, within ninety days from the receipt of a complete\napplication, shall make a determination as to whether or not such\nprojects shall receive state assistance.\n