State Grange Calls For Changes
HARRISBURG, (Dauphin
Co) - The Pennsylvania State
Grange strongly opposes delays
in the implementation of last
year’s amendments to the Clean
and Green program
Following a joint news confer
ence called by state representa
tives Stanley E. Saylor, R-York,
and John Gordner, D-Columbia,
the Grange and the
Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, a
Grange member from
Montgomery County gave testi
mony before the House
Agriculture and Rural Affairs
Committee, which was holding a
hearing to consider requests for
delays in implementation of Act
156.
Act 156 was designed to allow
Clean and Green to apply to a
farm’s entire acreage, including
the land under the farmhouse,
agricultural buildings and drive
ways, and more consistency in
assessment across the state
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through an exact formula for
determining assessments The
impetus for Act 156 was born in
Montgomery County, where
Grange members went to battle
over unfair assessment of farm
lands
Hiram Hershey, a
Montgomery County licensed
real estate broker and Grange
member, said the Grange was
instrumental in enacting the
original law, and now seeks
immediate implementation to
ensure it works for the better
ment of the farming community
and the environment.
“Farmers and their represen
tatives have worked hard to
have the Clean and Green Law
clarified. We have gone through
the legislative process to ensure
that the original Clean and
Green Law continues to be
implemented as it was written,”
Hershey testified to the commit
tee. “In fact, the amendments
presented and passed by the
General Assembly, Act 156 of
1998, were just that - clarifica
tion of the current law The
amendments did not significant
ly change the law, but stopped
abuses by local governing bodies
who discovered loopholes in the
original language. I see no rea
son to delay implementation or
change the amendments passed
last year.”
The Clean and Green pro
gram (Act 319 of 1974) is
designed to preserve farmland,
forest land and open space by
taxing it according to its use
value rather than the prevailing
market value It has been nearly
seven months since the amend
ments to Clean and Green were
signed into law as Act 156 of
1998.
Hershey said the amend
ments m Act 156 of 1998 are
important for farmers through
out the state, but particularly in
Montgomery County where land
under farm buildings is being
assessed at $40,000/acre, the
value of acreage used for devel
opment. Under the Act, the
value of land under farm build
ings is $6OO/acre.
This change in assessment is
a significant reduction in real
estate taxes, and the reduced
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taxation will assist and enable mtended to asBlBt farmer s to
farmers to continue to be pro- contmue farming -
duct've Hershey said It is The Pennsylvama state
ironic that the state and many G 1S an agriC ultural/rural
counties, including Montgomery zatlon Wlth over 30,000
County, are supporting farmland J mbers and |S dedlcated to
preservation by providing mil- rov hfe for aH rura i
lions of dollars to purchase p ennsylvanians through
developing rights but at the rootg •, lative pollcies , com .
same time ,s considering chang- munit serv]ce work and offer .
mg or delaying a law that is ,
b J ® mg member services
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