General Assembly Passes Three Bills Requested by State Agriculture Department

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Three bills that will help the Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) deliver its services more effectively passed during the 2014 General Assembly session and were signed today by Governor Martin O’Malley. The three bills clarified existing laws to help streamline processes and save money.

“We thank the O’Malley-Brown administration and members of the General Assembly who supported these bills and our efforts to improve services to the agriculture industry in Maryland,” said Agriculture Secretary Buddy Hance.

The three bills the department requested are:

• SB 71 – Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation (MALPF) – Value of Easement. This bill set limits on how much money MALPF can spend on an agricultural preservation easement. Those limits are now not less than 25 percent and no more than 75 percent of the land’s appraised fair market value. For instance, if an easement value (which is the Appraised Fair Market Value minus a calculated Agricultural Value) is greater than 75 percent of fair market value, then the offer would be set at 75 percent.  If it is less than 25 percent of fair market value, the offer will be either 25 percent or the asking price, whichever is lower.   

• SB 127 – Department of Agriculture – Manure Transport Project. The bill amends language in the Agricultural Article to provide MDA with more flexibility to use matching funds from commercial poultry companies to transport poultry manure.  

• SB 70 – Agriculture – Labeling on Restrictions of Use and Sale. This bill made technical corrections and clarifications to the Maryland Fertilizer Law to make it consistent with (1) the capabilities of modern fertilizer manufacturing technology to produce lawn and turf fertilizers, (2) the Association of American Plant Food Control Officers (AAPFCO) definitions and standards, and (3) the goal of reducing nitrogen levels in the Chesapeake attributable to lawn and turf fertilizers.

More information about these bills, and other bills that were introduced during the session that had an impact on agriculture, can be found on the MDA website here.   

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