The Adirondack Council

News Release

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Released - Thursday, May 22, 2003

ELIZABETHTOWN, NY - Three Adirondack towns where the Hancock Timber Resources Group is offering 72,000 acres of land for sale would reap an instant windfall of one million dollars in taxable land value if the state purchases a conservation easement on those lands, according to a new report released today by the Adirondack Council.

That would translate into up to $184,467 in new tax payments per year - or an 87 percent increase in total tax revenues from those lands.

Taxpayers in the Town of Colton would see the largest increase in total tax revenues from the Hancock lands. Colton's tax revenues would increase between 208 percent and 299 percent annually if the state purchased the development rights and/or the recreational rights to the land, the Council's report notes.

Clare would see the most modest boost, at 6.75 to 9.73 percent increase, while Clifton's property tax revenues would increase by 70 to 100 percent.

Conservation easements prohibit further development of land, but allow timber harvesting to continue and often include public access to the land. Hancock lands have been closed to public use for more than a century. Conservation easements are agreements between the state and a private landowner who agrees to keep his lands undeveloped. In exchange, the state pays its portion of the taxes on the lands forever.

"Talk about tax relief! I can't think of any town that wouldn't want a two- or three-fold increase in revenues on a major land holding with no obligation to do anything in return," said Adirondack Council Executive Director Brian L. Houseal. "If an easement deal is completed for all 52,000 unprotected acres, the three towns would have the luxury of deciding whether they should cut everyone's property taxes or improve services. Not many towns in America are in that position these days.

"We would love to see the state work out an easement on these lands similar to the one just completed on Tug Hill," Houseal said. "In that case, every affected community and interest group was included in the discussions over what will happen to the lands under easement. In the end, the project was great protection for the Fish Creek Watershed, while still affording ample recreational opportunities and continued timber harvesting.

"Our study was prompted by the fact that most of the Hancock land is currently enrolled in a timberland tax abatement program," Houseal said. "When the state buys land or easements in the Adirondack Park, it is obligated to pay its full share of the taxes. The state is not eligible to receive the abatement Hancock now enjoys.

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"In addition, if the state were to buy a half-mile-wide stretch along the rivers, the new tax windfall would increase even further," Houseal said. "On lands that become Forest Preserve, the state must pay 100 percent of the tax bill, again without being eligible for any abatement.

"At Hancock, the vast majority of the unprotected lands should be included in a similar easement package, with a small portion along the rivers added to the Forest Preserve. That way, everything would be protected from changes in use, and everything outside the river shorelines would be available for timber harvest."

Tax revenues would increase on 52,000 of the 72,000 acres in St. Lawrence County, which represents the area currently without any conservation easement protections. Roughly 20,000 acres of the Hancock holdings in St. Lawrence County are already protected by a conservation easement. Counting its 21,000 acres in Herkimer, Lewis and Oneida counties, Hancock owns a total of 93,000 acres in the Adirondack Park. The Herkimer-Lewis-Oneida tract is already protected by easements.

Methodology
If the development rights are worth half of the property's total value, then the state would be obligated to pay 50 percent of the taxes. In cases where the state also buys recreational rights, the state's obligation can rise to 72 percent or more. All of the current easements on Hancock lands in these towns are 72-percent easements.

Summary of Potential Tax Benefits

• In the Town of Clare, total property tax revenues (town, county, school and fire) would increase by $11,790 (6.75 percent) if the state bought a 50 percent easement, or by $17,043 (9.73 percent) if the state bought a 72-percent easement. Total current taxes on Hancock lands in the Town of Clare are $175,115.
  
  
• In the Town of Clifton, total property tax revenues would increase by $53,657 (70 percent) if the state bought a 50-percent easement, or by $63,352 (100 percent) if the state bought a 72-percent easement. Total current taxes on Hancock lands in Clifton are $31,624.
  
  
• In the Town of Colton, total tax revenues would increase by $139,539 (208 percent) if the state bought a 50-percent easement, or by $181,022 (299 percent) if the state bought a 72-percent easement. Total current taxes on Hancock lands in Colton are $45,307.

The Adirondack Council is an 18,000-member, privately funded, not-for-profit organization dedicated to protecting and enhancing the natural character of the Adirondack Park through research, education, advocacy and legal action.