The Loma Prietan
April 2003
Save the Williamson Act
by Tim Frank
The Governor's Budget has eliminated the $39M for Williamson Act Subventions to cities and counties, not just for this budget year, but permanently. The Williamson Act, which covers nearly 40% of the privately held land in the state, is one of the most effective farmland protection measures in the country.
The Williamson Act is a voluntary program that provides lower property taxes to agricultural landowners in exchange for their contractual commitments with participating cities and counties to keep their land in agricultural or open space use for at least 10 years.
Maintaining the subventions is critical. The subventions defray the cost to cities and counties for entering Williamson Act contracts. Without them, many cities and counties would not renew the contracts.
Since the Act was enacted in 1971, the state has never failed to fund the subvention program. To do so would be penny-wise and pound-foolish, placing at risk 16.3 million acres of protected agricultural and open space land.
This year's battle is a reprise from last year when the Sierra Club, working with the California Farm Bureau and others, mounted a successful campaign to preserve funding for the program. Now the challenge is even greater, and it is upon us. You can help by writing to your senator and assembly member. To be received in time, letters should be written immediately.