N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 20 § 8194.1

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 50, December 11, 2024

Section 8194.1 - Definitions

(a) Agricultural products means crops, livestock and livestock products and, to the extent that land used to produce woodland products qualifies for an agricultural assessment, woodland products.

(b) Agricultural assessment means the sum of the products of the number of acres of land used in agricultural production and the appropriate agricultural assessment value for such land, as certified by ORPTS, multiplied by the latest State equalization rate or special equalization rate.

(c) Agricultural assessment value means the value per acre assigned to land used in agricultural production for assessment purposes pursuant to section 304-a of the Agriculture and Markets Law.

(d) Agricultural district means a district created pursuant to article 25-AA of the Agriculture and Markets Law.

(e) Aquacultural enterprise means land and water bodies used in the production of aquaculture products.

(f) Aquacultural products means aquatic plants or animals produced in a managed operation including but not limited to fish, fish products, water plants, and shellfish.

(g) County director means a director of a county real property tax service agency appointed pursuant to section 1530 of the Real Property Tax Law or, in a county that does not have a real property tax service agency, the person or body that is vested with the powers and duties of the county director as set forth in section 1532 of the Real Property Tax Law.

(h) Conversion means an outward or affirmative act changing the use of agricultural land and shall not mean the nonuse or idling of such land. A conversion also does not occur when:

(1) oil, gas or wind rights associated with agricultural land are conveyed;

(2) agricultural land is used for oil, gas or wind exploration, development or extraction activity;

(3) agricultural land is taken by eminent domain or other involuntary proceeding other than a tax sale; or

(4) agricultural land within the New York City Watershed Area is purchased in fee by New York City for watershed protection purposes or a conservation easement in such land is conveyed by New York City to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in order to prohibit future agricultural use.

(i) Crops, livestock and livestock products shall include but not be limited to the following:

(1) field crops, including corn, wheat, oats, rye, barley, hay, potatoes and dry beans;

(2) fruits, including apples, peaches, grapes, cherries and berries;

(3) vegetables, including tomatoes, snap beans, cabbage, carrots, beets and onions;

(4) horticultural specialties, including nursery stock, ornamental shrubs, ornamental trees and flowers;

(5) livestock and livestock products, including cattle, sheep, hogs, goats, horses, poultry, ratites, such as ostriches, emus, rheas and kiwis, farmed deer, farmed buffalo, fur bearing animals, wool bearing animals, such as alpacas and llamas, milk, eggs and furs;

(6) maple sap or syrup;

(7) Christmas trees derived from a managed Christmas tree operation whether dug for transplanting or cut from the stump;

(8) aquaculture products, including fish, fish products, water plants and shellfish;

(9) woody biomass, which means short rotation woody crops raised for bioenergy, and shall not include farm woodland; and

(10) apiary products, including honey, beeswax, royal jelly, bee pollen, propolis, package bees, nucs and queens. Nucs are small honey bee colonies created from larger colonies including the nuc box, which is a smaller version of a beehive, designed to hold up to five frames from an existing colony.

(j) Farm woodland means land used for the production for sale of woodland products, including but not limited to logs, lumber, posts and firewood. Farm woodland does not include land used to produce Christmas trees or land used for the processing or retail merchandising of woodland products.

(k) Gross sales value means the proceeds from the sale of:

(1) crops, livestock or livestock products produced on land used in agricultural production, provided that whenever a crop is processed before sale, the proceeds shall be limited to the market value of such crop in its unprocessed state;

(2) woodland products from qualified farm woodland, not to exceed $2,000 annually;

(3) aquaculture products;

(4) honey and beeswax produced by bees in hives located on an otherwise qualified farm operation but which does not independently satisfy the gross sales requirement;

(5) maple syrup processed from maple sap produced on land used in agricultural production in conjunction with the same or an otherwise qualified farm operation;

(6) payments received by reason of land set aside pursuant to Agriculture and Markets Law, section 301(4)(e);

(7) payments received by thoroughbred horse breeders pursuant to Racing, Pari-Mutuel Wagering and Breeding Law, section 247; and

(8) effective January 1, 2009, compost, mulch or other biomass crops, as defined by Agriculture and Markets Law, section 301(16), not to exceed $5,000 annually.

The market value may be determined using published price information from the New York State Agricultural Statistics Service or other verifiable sources. The quantity of production prior to processing should be substantiated by the applicant in a manner acceptable to the assessor.

(l) Land classification system means the system established by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets for ranking soils.

(m) Land used in agricultural production or agricultural land generally means not less than seven acres of land and/or water bodies used in aquacultural production used as a single operation in the preceding two years for the production for sale of crops, livestock and livestock products of an average gross sales value of $10,000 or more. Land used in agricultural production also may include:

(1) qualified rented land, qualified farm woodland and support land, land hereinafter defined as a managed Christmas tree operation used to produce Christmas trees, and land hereinafter defined as sugarbush but not nonagricultural land;

(2) land set aside through participation in a Federal conservation program pursuant to title one of the Federal Food Security Act of 1985 or any subsequent Federal programs established for the purpose of replenishing highly erodible land which has been depleted by continuous tilling or reducing material surpluses of agricultural commodities provided it is part of and contiguous with a single farm operation which otherwise satisfies the requirements for eligibility for an agricultural assessment;

(3) land of less than seven acres used in agricultural or aquacultural production as a single operation in the preceding two years for the production for sale of crops, livestock and livestock products of an average gross sales value of $50,000 or more;

(4) a commercial horse boarding operation supported by not less than seven acres that in the preceding two years has produced annual gross receipts of $10,000 or more through the boarding of horses and/or from the sale of crops, livestock and livestock products, boards at least 10 horses regardless of ownership, and is not primarily used for horse racing;

(5) land situated under a structure within which crops, livestock or livestock products are produced for sale, provided that the aforementioned products have an average gross sales value of $10,000 or more, if the farm operation uses seven or more acres in agricultural production, or has an average gross sales value of $50,000 or more, if the farm operation uses less than seven acres in agricultural production;

(6) the agricultural land of a qualified newly established farm operation that satisfies the definition set forth in subdivision (o) of this section; or

(7) rented land located within an agricultural district used by a not-for-profit institution for agricultural research intended to improve the quality or quantity of crops, livestock or livestock products, regardless of whether such land's crops, livestock or livestock products have any gross sales value.

Agricultural land located within an agricultural district may also qualify for an agricultural assessment when the cooperative extension service certifies on a form prescribed by the State Board that an act of God, natural disaster or continued adverse weather conditions has destroyed the farm operation's agricultural production and, as a result, such production does not produce an average gross sales value of $10,000 or more.

(n) Managed Christmas tree operation means land where evergreens are planted and cultivated in an orderly fashion for the purpose of harvesting, whether dug for transplanting or cut from the stump, for sale as Christmas trees.

(o) Newly established farm operation generally means a commercial farm in its first or second year of operation that comprises not less than seven owned or rented acres used as a single operation for the production for sale of crops, livestock or livestock products of an annual gross sales value of $10,000 or more. Such a newly established farm operation may not be owned or controlled by the owners of a previous farm operation that used the same land for commercial farming. A newly established farm operation may also include:

(1) a commercial farm consisting of less than seven acres of land used as a single operation that in its first or second year of farming produced for sale crops, livestock or livestock products of an average gross sales value of $50,000 or more;

(2) a commercial horse boarding operation supported by not less than seven acres that in its first or second year produced annual gross receipts from boarding horses and/or from the sale of crops, livestock and livestock products in the amount of $10,000 or more;

(3) a single commercial farm operation of not less than seven acres used solely to plant a new orchard or vineyard, regardless of whether the new orchard or vineyard produces fruit for sale for four years following planting; or

(4) a single commercial farm operation of not less than seven acres used solely to plant Christmas trees that will be made available for sale, regardless of whether the Christmas trees are sold for five years after planting.

An otherwise qualified, newly established commercial farm operation may also receive an agricultural assessment for land situated under a structure within which crops, livestock or livestock products are produced for sale, provided that the aforementioned agricultural products have an annual gross sales value of $10,000 or more, if the farm operation uses seven or more acres in agricultural production, or have an annual gross sales value of $50,000 or more, if the farm operation uses less than seven acres in agricultural production.

(p) Nonagricultural land means land used for nonagricultural purposes such as a homestead; commercial gravel quarry; land used for oil, gas or wind exploration, development or extraction activity; recreational uses such as camping, athletic and park facilities; retail establishments of any kind including restaurants, lodging facilities and roadside stands used for merchandising crops, livestock or livestock products; facilities, including sawmills, used to process crops, livestock or livestock products; fertilizer plants; and land used exclusively for hunting or game preserves. Nonagricultural land shall also include any land that is not actually being used to produce crops, livestock or livestock products for sale, where such land is not qualified farm woodland or support land.

(q) Oil, gas or wind exploration, development or extraction activities means the installation and use of fixtures and equipment which are necessary for the exploration, development or extraction of oil, natural gas or wind, including access roads, drilling apparatus, pumping facilities, pipelines and wind turbines.

(r) Orchard means land used for the production of apples, cherries, peaches, pears or other edible fruit grown on trees.

(s) Parcel means a separately assessed lot, piece or portion of real property.

(t) Payment means a charge imposed for the conversion of land granted an agricultural assessment.

(u) Qualified farm woodland means farm woodland which is part of land otherwise qualified for an agricultural assessment, and which does not exceed 50 acres attributable to any separately assessed parcel. Farm woodland is considered to be part of land otherwise qualified for an agricultural assessment if it is used as a single operation and contiguous with such land. Lands divided by State, county or town roads, energy transmission corridors and similar facilities are to be considered contiguous. In determining average gross sales value, proceeds from the sale of woodland products from farm woodland qualified for an agricultural assessment may be included up to a maximum annual amount of $2,000.

(v) Qualified rented land means land of an owner-applicant for an agricultural assessment and rented to another person, where:

(1) the land otherwise satisfies the requirements for eligibility for an agricultural assessment; or

(2) the land consists of not less than seven acres used as a single operation for the production for sale of crops, livestock or livestock products, exclusive of woodland products, which does not independently satisfy the gross sales value requirement, where such land was used in such production for the preceding two years and currently is being so used under a written rental arrangement of five or more years in conjunction with land which qualifies for an agricultural assessment.

(w) Rental arrangement means a written lease signed by both of the parties to the agreement.

(x) Single operation means lands used in agricultural production, whether owned or rented, that as a group comprise one distinct agricultural business enterprise. It is not required that the lands be contiguous nor in the same assessing unit.

(y) Soil group or subdivision thereof means a class of soil mapping units established by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets.

(z) Soil group worksheet means a statement for a parcel prepared by the soil and water conservation district office, which contains a tabulation of the number of acres in each soil group or subdivision thereof.

(aa) Soil map means a cartographic description of the location of soils of different qualities prepared by the soil and water conservation district office.

(ab) Soil mapping unit means a cartographic designation established by the National Cooperative Soil Survey for each soil, or subdivision thereof, found in New York State.

(ac) Spatially integrated land means land that is located amid, between or on the perimeter of cropland, orchards, vineyards or land that is actually used to pasture livestock.

(ad) Statewide information system code or SWIS code means a numbering system established by ORPTS to uniquely identify each county, city, town and village, and that portion of a town outside of incorporated villages.

(ae) Sugarbush means an area of sugar maple trees maintained for the purpose of producing maple syrup. This area is exclusive of the area defined as farm woodland.

(af) Support land means land constituting a portion of a parcel, as identified on an assessment roll, which also contains land qualified for an agricultural assessment, where such land is not actually being used to produce crops, livestock, livestock products or woodland products for sale, but is being used in support of a farm operation or in support of land used in agricultural production (examples include, but are not limited to, farm ponds, swamps used for drainage, land used for erosion control, hedgerows, access roads, land under farm buildings, dikes and levees used for flood protection, drainage ditches and land used for farm waste management). Support land also includes any other land, constituting a minor portion of such parcel, that is spatially integrated within the portion of the farm operation actually used to produce crops, livestock or livestock products for sale, where such land is not qualified farm woodland or nonagricultural land. Support land further includes land used to support an apiary products operation which is owned by the operation and consists of:

(1) not less than seven nor more than 10 acres used as a single operation in the preceding two years for the production for sale of crops, livestock or livestock products of an average gross sales value of $10,000 or more; or

(2) less than seven acres used as a single operation in the preceding two years for the production for sale of crops, livestock or livestock products of an average gross sales value of $50,000 or more. The land used to support an apiary products operation shall include, but not be limited to, the land under a structure within which apiary products are produced, harvested and stored for sale; and a buffer area maintained by the operation between the operation and adjacent landowners.

(ag) Vineyard means land used for the production of grapes.

(ah) Woodland products includes logs, lumber, posts and firewood.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 20 § 8194.1