WI-DNR
Standardizes Grant Easement Document
The WI-DNR Stewardship Program staff have been working with a diverse
group of advisors for over a year to develop the DNR Standard Grant Easement
- a model document to be used when groups are requesting Stewardship Program
funding for an easement project. The final piece of the easement is now
out for review, and it is the Department's intent to have the full document
available by October. Groups will be required to use the DNR Standard
Grant Easement when they are applying for funding to acquire an easement
or when they plan on using a donated easement as a match on another Stewardship
Program grant application. The model document contains language required
for Stewardship Fund eligibility, as well as optional language and clauses
to be used as appropriate to the project. Department staff will be attending
a day-long workshop on the Standard Grant Easement in August, learning
how to evaluate easements developed using the model and becoming familiar
with the various requirements and options available in the document. Gathering
Waters staff will also be attending this workshop, in order to be able
to answer questions about the easement model and help you work with the
document in future easement projects.
For
questions about the Standard Grant Easement, please contact Pam Foster
Felt of Gathering Waters at 608-251-9131 or pam [at] gatheringwaters.org.
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Non-profit
oversight recommendations presented to Congress
Several initiatives are underway to respond to the Senate Finance Committee's
investigations into improper activities by non-profit organizations. In
addition to the work being done by the Land Trust Alliance to develop
an accreditation program for land trusts, the Independent Sector convened
a group of experts to provide a list of recommendations to the Finance
Committee, the Internal Revenue Service and non-profit groups. These recommendations
deal with ethics, governance and transparency of non-profit organizations.
A report outlining all of the recommendations was presented to Senator
Grassley, Chair of the Finance Committee, in June, and is available at
www.nonprofitpanel.org.
A
brief summary of the recommendations:
To
Congress
• Increase funding to IRS and states for oversight of tax-exempt
groups
• Strengthen rules
for appraisals of noncash gifts; strengthen penalties for donors and appraisers
who exaggerate the value of their deduction
To the IRS
• Enforce penalties
on organizations that do not file complete or accurate returns
• Require disclosure of organizational conflict of interest
policies
To non-profit organizations
• Undertake regular,
full review of governance, compensation and financial policies and procedures
• Provide public
reports of their programs and how they evaluate success of those programs
The
group also dealt directly with the issue of improperly appraised conservation
easements:
"Non-Cash
Contributions: Conservation and Historic Façade Easements
A conservation easement or historic façade easement donation requires
ongoing enforcement of the terms of the easement agreement by the charitable
organizations who accept such donations. Congress should increase penalties
on taxpayers who claim excessive deductions for donations of conservation
or historic façade easements and should only permit a deduction for
an easement if it is made to a qualified charity or government entity
under the terms of a written agreement that specifies the restrictions
the easement imposes on future use of the property. A charitable organization
that accepts easement donations should be required to provide more information
on its annual Form 990 about the easements it holds and to certify that
it has implemented reasonable procedures for monitoring compliance with
the terms of its easement agreements. Congress should impose penalties
on charities that fail to enforce conservation or historic façade easement
agreements."
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Proposed
Accreditation and Training Program Design
The steering committee recommended to the board of directors of the Land
Trust Alliance (LTA) that a formal accreditation program for land trusts
be established, supported by training and technical assistance. The board
approved the development of a business plan based on the recommendations
detailed on the LTA
website.
There will be two conference
calls in August open to all land trusts to explain these recommendations
and answer questions.
Phone numbers and calling instructions are below and included in the information
booklet.
CONFERENCE CALL DETAILS
August 3, 2005 2:00 pm Eastern
Time (1:00 Central, 12:00 Mountain, 11:00 Pacific)
August 11, 2005 4:00 pm Eastern
Time (3:00 Central, 2:00 Mountain, 1:00 Pacific)
The call number is 1-888-314-3158.
The call name is "LTA Accreditation Program Question and Answer Session"
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Ask
an Attorney
Our question this time around has been answered by Renay Leone of The
First American Corporation.
Q: If
a local zoning ordinance makes it possible for landowners to transfer
development rights, can a Land Trust transfer the rights it previously
acquired through a purchase of development rights program? In other words,
when a Land Trust purchases or receives the donation of development rights,
what actually happens to those rights? Are they retired, or extinguished,
or what? And, does it make it a difference if the conservation easement
document is titled "Grant of Conservation Easement" or "Grant
of Conservation Easement and Development Rights".
A:
Once a conservation easement (or “grant” of conservation easement
or grant of development rights – same thing) has been given to a
qualified organization under state and federal law, the development rights
and any restrictions on the property’s use are permanently extinguished.
Any new ordinances, laws or regulations that allow the transfer or sale
of development rights would not apply to property whose rights were previously
conveyed (no matter whether they were donated or sold). The only case
in which an additional transfer would be possible is if the original grant
only conveyed part of the rights. For example, say the property was eligible
for splitting into 20 housing lots and the document conveyed 10 of those
away. If the remaining ten lots were not built up and the landowner chose
to convey those remaining rights away under a subsequent TDR program,
they should be eligible for any ‘trade’ or donation rights.
It would depend, of course, on the details of both the original grant
of easement (and/or grant of development rights – same thing) and
the subsequent local TDR or PDR program.
Send
us your questions! Free legal advice! We’re looking for questions
to be featured in this section. Send any questions or suggestions to Karen
Bassler at karen [at] gatheringwaters.org. |
Upcoming
Events
Visit the Events
section of the Gathering Waters website for more information about the
following events:
Hosted
by Gathering Waters Conservancy
10/13/05 — Land Conservation
Leadership Awards Celebration
Other
Conferences and Events
08/02/05 — Wisconsin
Bird Conservation Initiative Coordinating Council Meeting
08/04/05 — Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Public Hearing:
08/06/05 — Parade of Preserves: Sugar Creek Bluff State Natural
Area
08/11/05 — WOW!: The Wonders of Wetlands
08/20/05 — Parade of Preserves: Huiras Lake State Natural Area
08/20/05 — Parade of Preserves: Wayward Beaver Lodge
09/10/05 — Achieving Conservation Goals Through Smart Growth
10/14/05 — National Land Conservation Conference Rally 2005 (Early
registration due 8/15/05)
10/15/05 — Preserving
Family Lands: Protecting Your Land for Future Generations (Free
for land owners)
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Land
Trust/Non-Profit Job Opportunities
Visit the Jobs
section of the Gathering Waters website for more information about the
following job opportunities:
• Park
Ranger, Necedah National Wildlife Refuge, Necedah, WI
• Nature
Center Director, Aldo Leopold Nature Center, Madison, WI
• Preserve
& Stewardship Manager, Ozaukee Washington Land Trust, West Bend,
WI
• Regional
Conservation Director, Minnesota Land Trust, St. Paul, MN
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Quick
Links
Info
for Land Trusts • Publications
• Services
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Gathering Waters
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