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Minnesota Corn Growers welcome Dayton’s support of buffer tax credit bill

The Minnesota Corn Growers (MCGA) welcome Governor Dayton’s support of a proposed property tax credit on buffers.

MCGA executive director Adam Birr tells Brownfield the credit would provide eligible landowners $50 dollars per acre each year for farmland converted to water quality buffers.

“Governor Dayton on Friday released a press release saying he would welcome legislation that Representative Paul Anderson (R, District 44) and a counterpart on the Senate side sponsored.  And (Dayton) said if that bill came to his desk, he would sign it.”

Birr says buffer compensation was a priority issue for the Corn Growers going into the 2018 Session.

“If you had to put in a buffer, whether you did it post-2015 when the law went into place, or pre-2015, to be in compliance with the shore-land ordinance, you’ll get a $50 dollar per-acre credit on your property taxes.  And we thought that was probably the cleanest approach on this.”

Governor Dayton first proposed a version of this tax credit as part of his 2017 Tax Bill.

He is encouraging Republican Legislative leaders to send the bill to him clean and as quickly as possible.