§ 32 — Duties of the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets

(a) The Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets shall develop by rule, with the advice and consent of the Housing and Conservation Board:
(1) a program for selecting and recommending to the Housing and Conservation Board agricultural land development rights suitable for acquisition by the State; and
(2) criteria to be used by the Board in reviewing the Secretary’s recommendations for acquisition.
(b) The program and criteria shall be designed to ensure that, in a municipality with an approved plan under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117, the Board only acquires agricultural development rights to land designated or identified in a land evaluation and site assessment system pursuant to 24 V.S.A. § 4345a(5)(E) for agricultural use under that chapter. In a municipality without an approved plan, these restrictions shall not apply.
(c) The program and criteria shall be designed to ensure that, in a municipality with an approved plan under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117, the Board only acquires agricultural development rights to land designated for agricultural use under that chapter. In a municipality without an approved plan, these restrictions shall not apply.
(d) The Secretary shall report to the General Assembly not later than January 15, 1989 concerning the progress of the program. (Added 1987, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 63, eff. May 19, 1988; amended 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003; 2021, No. 105 (Adj. Sess.), § 46, eff. July 1, 2022.)