California Lawmaker Plots New Path to Protect Farmland Tax Break

A California lawmaker will try again to close what some see as a loophole that could let property developers offset project costs using a tax break meant to protect farmland.

The policy at issue, known as the Williamson Act, allows farmers to lower their property taxes if they enter into a contract with their county government to keep using their land for agriculture over a 10-year period. About 16 million acres of California land are enrolled, representing about one-third of all privately held land and about one-half of all agricultural land in the state, according to the California Department of ...