Blankenbush: Our Family Farmers Need A Break, Pass The Two-Percent Ag Assessment Cap Now

June 4, 2013

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River) announces his two percent Ag Assessment Cap at a press conference in Albany with the New York State Farm Bureau.

Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River), the ranking Minority member on the Assembly Agriculture Committee, today joined a coalition of bi-partisan legislators to call on the Assembly to pass the two percent Ag Assessment Cap legislation to help struggling family farms. The bill would place a cap, similar to the property tax cap, on farmland assessments, which use national production value statistics and soil type to determine property taxes. New York farmers are paying the second-highest property taxes in the nation, averaging $38 per acre, compared to $12 per acre nationally.

“In these final days of session, we must take a bold stance and show our family farmers, the job creators of our rural communities, that we stand by them by passing the two percent Ag Assessment Cap,” said Blankenbush. “We recognize their important role in our rural upstate economies, now we must work to truly help these family farms. Get the cap passed now.”

New York’s family farms already are operating at a loss. Numerous factors like the costs of fuel, feed, labor and health care further diminish their competitiveness. Making matters worse are their incredibly high property taxes, which consume 15 percent of a farm’s net income, the highest rate in the nation. Over the last 10 years, the assessment rates have caused property taxes to double. Blankenbush said that if the legislation doesn’t pass, more family farms may be forced to shut down their operations.

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