§ 105-277.15. (Effective for taxes imposed for taxable years beginning on or after July 1, 2010) Taxation of wildlife conservation land. - North Carolina Statutes

§ 105‑277.15. (Effective for taxes imposed for taxable years beginning on or after July 1,2010) Taxation of wildlife conservation land.

(a)        Definitions. – Thefollowing definitions apply in this section:

(1)        Business entity. – Definedin G.S. 105‑277.2.

(2)        Family businessentity. – A business entity whose members are, directly or indirectly,individuals and are relatives. An individual is indirectly a member of abusiness entity if the individual is a member of a business entity or abeneficiary of a trust that is part of the ownership structure of the businessentity.

(3)        Family trust. – Atrust that was created by an individual and whose beneficiaries are, directlyor indirectly, individuals who are the creator of the trust or a relative ofthe creator. An individual is indirectly a beneficiary of a trust if theindividual is a beneficiary of another trust or a member of a business entitythat has a beneficial interest in the trust.

(4)        Member. – Defined inG.S. 105‑277.2.

(5)        Relative. – Definedin G.S. 105‑277.2.

(b)        Classification. – Wildlifeconservation land is designated a special class of property under Article V,Section 2(2) of the North Carolina Constitution and must be appraised,assessed, and taxed in accordance with this section. Wildlife conservation landclassified under this section must be appraised and assessed as if it wereclassified under G.S. 105‑277.3 as agricultural land.

(c)        Requirements. – Landqualifies as wildlife conservation land if it meets the following size,ownership, and use requirements:

(1)        Size. – The landmust consist of at least 20 contiguous acres.

(2)        Ownership. – Theland must be owned by an individual, a family business entity, or a familytrust and must have been owned by the same owner for the previous five years,except as follows:

a.         If the land is ownedby a family business entity, the land meets the ownership requirement if theland was owned by one or more members of the family business entity for therequired time.

b.         If the land is ownedby a family trust, the land meets the ownership requirement if the land wasowned by one or more beneficiaries of the family trust for the required time.

c.         If an owner acquiresland that was classified as wildlife conservation land under this section whenit was acquired and the owner continues to use the land as wildlifeconservation land, then the land meets the ownership requirement if the newowner files an application and signs the wildlife habitat conservationagreement in effect for the property within 60 days after acquiring theproperty.

(3)        Use. – The land mustmeet all of the following requirements:

a.         The land must bemanaged under a written wildlife habitat conservation agreement with the NorthCarolina Wildlife Resources Commission that is in effect as of January 1 of theyear for which the benefit of this section is claimed and that requires theowner to do one or more of the following:

1.         Protect an animalspecies that lives on the land and, as of January 1 of the year for which thebenefit of this section is claimed, is on a North Carolina protected animallist published by the Commission under G.S. 113‑333.

2.         Conserve any of thefollowing priority animal wildlife habitats: longleaf pine forest, earlysuccessional habitat, small wetland community, stream and riparian zone, rockoutcrop, or bat cave.

b.         It must have beenclassified under G.S. 105‑277.3 when the wildlife habitat conservationagreement was signed or the owner must demonstrate to both the WildlifeResources Commission and the assessor that the owner used the land for apurpose specified in the signed wildlife habitat conservation agreement forthree years preceding the January 1 of the year for which the benefit of thissection is claimed.

(d)        Restrictions. – Thefollowing restrictions apply to the classification allowed under this section:

(1)        No more than 100acres of an owner's land in a county may be classified under this section.

(2)        Land owned by abusiness entity is not eligible for classification under this section if thebusiness entity is a corporation whose shares are publicly traded or one of itsmembers is a corporation whose shares are publicly traded.

(e)        Deferred Taxes. – Thedifference between the taxes that are due on wildlife conservation landclassified under this section and that would be due if the land were taxed onthe basis of its true value is a lien on the property. The difference in taxesmust be carried forward in the records of each taxing unit as deferred taxes.The deferred taxes for the preceding three fiscal years are due and payable inaccordance with G.S. 105‑277.1F when the land loses its eligibility fordeferral as a result of a disqualifying event. A disqualifying event occurswhen the property no longer qualifies as wildlife conservation land.

(f)         Exceptions to Payment.– No deferred taxes are due in the following circumstances and the deferredtaxes remain a lien on the land:

(1)        When the owner ofwildlife conservation land that was previously classified under G.S. 105‑277.3before the wildlife habitat conservation agreement was signed does not transferthe land and the land again becomes eligible for classification under G.S. 105‑277.3.In this circumstance, the deferred taxes are payable in accordance with G.S.105‑277.3.

(2)        When land that isclassified under this section is transferred to an owner who signed thewildlife habitat conservation agreement in effect for the land at the time ofthe transfer and the land remains classified under this section. In thiscircumstance, the deferred taxes are payable in accordance with this section.

(g)        Exceptions toPayment and Lien. – Notwithstanding subsection (e) of this section, if landloses its eligibility for deferral solely due to one of the following reasons,no deferred taxes are due and the lien for the deferred taxes is extinguished:

(1)        The property isconveyed by gift to a nonprofit organization and qualifies for exclusion fromthe tax base under G.S. 105‑275(12) or G.S. 105‑275(29).

(2)        The property isconveyed by gift to the State, a political subdivision of the State, or theUnited States.

(h)        Administration. – Anowner who applies for the classification allowed under this section must attacha copy of the owner's written wildlife habitat agreement required undersubsection (c) of this section. An owner who fails to notify the countyassessor when land classified under this section loses its eligibility forclassification is subject to a penalty in the amount set in G.S. 105‑277.5. (2008‑171,s. 1.)