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By Lana Robinson
Field Editor
As the 79th session of the Texas Legislature enters the homestretch, it appears that matters of interest to the Texas Farm Bureau will fare well. TFB State Legislative Director Billy Howe, on April 25, reported good progress on the organization's top 10 priority issues for 2005 as follows:
1. Taxes
• Oppose changes to the current sales tax exemption on agricultural inputs and off-road diesel.
• Oppose any changes to the current law to qualify land for open-space or agricultural use valuation.
• Support tax alternatives that provide a proportional reduction in local school property taxes.
Howe said agricultural exemptions and open-space valuation remain safe.
"Neither the House or Senate school finance plan proposes to repeal agriculture's sales tax exemptions or open-space valuation for property taxes," said Howe. HB 3 (James "Jim" Keffer, R-Eastland), which addresses school finance, preserves the current ag valuation, he said.
2. Water
• Oppose any attempt to mandate conservation measures for agriculture.
• Oppose the complete repeal of the Junior Water Rights provision on inter-basin transfers of surface water.
• Oppose any recommendation to address the instream flows issue that negatively impacts agricultural producers.
• Oppose any changes to the authority of groundwater conservation districts that negatively impact the rights of landowners or rural areas.
"Everything is fine on water. There is no bill that would mandate conservation for agriculture or places new mandates on agriculture water users," Howe said.
3. Public School Funding
• Maintain adequate level of funding for rural schools under the school finance formulas.
• Oppose any attempt to mandate consolidation of school districts.
"The budget maintains adequate funding for rural schools," said Howe. HB 2 by Kent Gruesendorf (R-Arlington), which contains a "Roadmap to Results," directing schools to use education dollars more effectively, does not call for consolidation or reductions in rural funding, Howe noted.
4. State Budget
• Maintain current baseline funding for agricultural agencies and programs.
•Oppose unreasonable fee increases on agricultural producers.
• Support the current level of funding for food and fiber research.
"The House budget proposed a lot of cuts in programs, including agriculture programs," Howe reported, "but the Senate's budget maintains the current funding for agriculture programs. We're supporting the Senate's budget. It's better for agriculture. SB 1 is in the conference committee now."
5. Property Rights
• Support changes to the current land vacancy process to ensure the fair treatment of landowners.
• Support legislation to re-establish the requirement that good faith negotiations to purchase land precede condemnation.
• Support legislation to give landowners the option of receiving a participation payment for the use of their land as a utility right-of-way.
• Support changes to the current annexation law that gives landowners more rights to prevent annexation.
With respect to land vacancy, Howe said related bills are moving through the process.
"We're optimistic those will pass, and will take care of the land vacancy issue," he said.
SB 1103, introduced by Kevin Eltife (R-Tyler) and supported by TFB, has been passed by the Senate and referred to the House Committee on House Energy Resources. This bill, as previously reported, would change the powers and duties of the General Land Office (GLO) with land vacancies.
Under this legislation, the GLO would notify interested parties about a land vacancy application. The vacancy applicant must pay all expenses related to proving the vacancy; a determination of "No vacant land" by the GLO is final and is not appealable; the vacancy finder award of a mineral interest has been reduced by half; and a good faith claimant can purchase the vacant land and up to half of the mineral interest.
HB 3017, introduced by Rob Orr (R-Burleson), has been voted favorably from the House Committee on Land and Resource Management and is now in the Texas Senate, Howe noted. This bill, as previously reported, would require an entity with condemnation authority to perform an official appraisal before an offer to purchase property is made. The appraisal must be on the tract of land to be condemned, and is not sufficient if the appraisal is a generalized valuation of similar property .
If the condemning entity and the landowner do not come to an agreement, the appraisal is proof of good faith negotiations to purchase the property.
The bill requires the condemning entity to pay the attorney fees if a court holds the offer was not in good faith.
"Nothing is moving on the participation of payment for use of land for utility rights-of-way. However, we are trying to amend the PUC (Public Utilities Commission) sunset bill to add a participation payment for the landowner whose land is being taken for a utility right-of-way," Howe said.
One annexation bill, S.B. 734 by Tommy Williams (R-The Woodlands) that protects the right of landowner to hunt on their property if they're annexed, has passed House and Senate. This bill, as previously reported, would limit the ability of a city to regulate the discharge of firearms on annexed land or on land that is within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of a city.
Also making progress is HB 2305, introduced by Carter Casteel (R-New Braunfels) and backed by Farm Bureau. The bill would require a municipality to offer the owner of agricultural land an agreement to prevent the annexation of property. The purpose of the annexation would be to prevent the development of agricultural land into residential or commercial property. Under the agreement, the landowner would avoid annexation as long as the land continues to be used for agricultural purposes.
"That bill (HB 2305) is out of the House committee. We hope to get it out of the House this week or next week," said Howe.
6. Electrical Work on Agricultural Property or Equipment
• Support legislation to give agriculture an exemption from the law requiring all electrical work be performed by a state licensed electrician.
HB 1317 by Representative Joe Driver (R-Garland) provides an exemption for agriculture from having to use a licensed electrician. The exemption applies to buildings, structures, and equipment used in agriculture (legislation was passed in the last session which did not provide for this exemption).
"That's been voted from committee, so we're optimistic about that," said Howe.
7. Texas Food and Fiber Commission
• Monitor legislation to consolidate the Texas Food and Fiber Commission with the Texas Department of Agriculture to ensure current programs within the agency continue.
"Basically, we wanted to make sure if the Commission is consolidated into TDA, that it retains its current funding for the programs, and that has been accomplished, so far. Both the Senate and House budgets transfer the funding to TDA, so there is no loss of funding there," the TFB state legislative director said.
8. Labor
• Oppose any changes to the current exemption for agricultural employers to carry worker's compensation insurance.
"We're good here. Neither the House nor Senate bill removes the agricultural exemption for agricultural employers to carry worker's compensation insurance," said Howe.
9. Transportation
• Support legislation to protect the rights of landowners from the construction of the Trans-Texas Corridor.
"While no legislation has been filed to repeal the TTC, there are several bills we support that would make construction of the corridor better for landowners," he said.
10. Feral Hogs
• Support the creation of a program to control or eliminate feral hogs.
"There is money budgeted for a feral hog control program in the Senate budget, and we're supporting that funding. It depends on what happens in the conference committee, whe-ther or not the money will be there to have a program," said Howe.
