Contact: Valerie Connelly or Kurt Fuchs
(410) 269-0656        (410) 269-0081 – fax

No. 2  1/26/06

 Hearings and briefings next week include:

 Briefing on the Sale of the Donaldson Brown Property (Cecil County)
APPROPRIATIONS AND ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS
11:00am in the Joint Hearing Room

H.B. 51 – Motor Vehicle Excise Tax – Trailers – Delegate Kach
WAYS AND MEANS, 1^st floor, New House Office Building, Wednesday at 11:00am
This bill would reduce the minimum fair market value on which tax can be collected for used trailers which are sold by any person other than a licensed dealer from $640 to $320.  The change is effective on October 1, 2006.  MARYLAND FARM BUREAU SUPPORTS H.B. 51.

H.B. 90 – Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation – Dwelling Relocation –  Request by the Maryland Department of Agriculture
ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS, 2^nd floor, New House Office Building, Wednesday at 1:30pm
This bill allows MALPF to approve a landowner’s request to relocate the dwelling unit on an easement property if the new location does not interfere with agricultural activity on the farm.  The bill requires that the original dwelling be demolished or converted to an agricultural function if the landowner builds a new home in the new location.  MARYLAND FARM BUREAU SUPPORTS H.B. 90.

H.B. 91 – Department of Agriculture – Cost Sharing for Water Pollution Control- Requested by the Maryland Department of Agriculture
ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS, 2^nd floor, New House Office Building, 1pm on Wednesday
This bill increases the cap for the cost-share maximum under the Maryland Agricultural Water Quality Cost Share Program (MACS) from $75,000 to $100,000.  Current law provides for an 87 ½ cost share through MDA for the installation of best management projects that meet technical specifications and that will be maintained for the life of the project.  County Soil Conservation District offices must certify standards and eligible costs.  MD Farm Bureau supports this bill because certain projects for manure storage can exceed the current cap and discourage use of the BMP by farmers. MARYLAND FARM BUREAU SUPPORTS H.B. 91

S.B. 139 – Vehicle Laws – Vehicle Registration Fees – Discount for Seniors – Senator Brochin
JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS, 2 East Miller, Wednesday at 1pm
This bill would decreases the following vehicle registration fees for Marylanders 65 years of age and older.  For seniors the new registration fee for Class A (Passenger) and Class M (Multipurpose) vehicles of 3700 lbs. or less will be $27 (discounted from $50.50) and for vehicles 3700 lbs. or more, $40.50 (discounted from $76.50).  The new senior rate registration fee for Class E (Truck) vehicles will be $33.75.  MARYLAND FARM BUREAU SUPPORTS S.B. 139.

S.B. 176 – Motor Vehicles – Class G (Trailer) Vehicles – Registration  - Senator Della
JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS, 2 East Miller
This bill would allow for the registration of a Class G (trailer) for up to 2 years.  The fee for a two-year registration will simply be the current yearly registration fee multiplied by 2.  FOR INFORMATION ONLY

 H.B. 28 – Common Sense Food Consumption Act – Delegate Arnick
JUDICIARY, 1^st Floor, New House Office Building
This bill prohibits a person from bringing a civil action against a seller of food for damages or injunctive relief based on a claim or injury or death resulting from weight gain, obesity, or a health condition that is related to weight gain or obesity.  The bill does allow a civil action if the seller knowingly and willfully violated a federal or state law applicable to the marketing, distribution, advertising, labeling or sale of food.  The bill also allows a suit for breach of contract or express warranty or for the sale of adulterated food.  MARYLAND FARM BUREAU SUPPORTS H.B. 28.

The following bills have been introduced but have not yet been scheduled for a hearing.  Maryland Farm Bureau staffers are still reviewing the bills with our leadership to determine our position.  Farmers have indicated special interest in bills dealing with eminent domain and estate tax for the 2006 session.  We will try to share a sample of these bills with you as they are introduced.

 H.B. 80 – Real Property – Eminent Domain – Limitations on Condemnation Authority – Delegates Boteler & Cluster, referred to ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS
This bill defines “public use” and prohibits the taking of private property unless it is necessary for a public use.  In the bill “public use” means “public ownership or control or physical use or access by the general public.”  Public use includes use of property by the public or the government.  It also includes use by a utility or common carrier, use for emergency response and destruction of property to prevent a public catastrophe.  The bill requires that the original owner or heirs be given the right to first refusal to buy back property if it is not used for the public use and the condemning authority chooses to sell it.

H.B. 106 – Eminent Domain – Condemnation Costs – Fees Incurred – Delegate Conroy, referred to ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS
This bill requires a condemning authority to pay all of the legal, appraisal and expert fees incurred by a defendant in a condemnation proceeding no matter what the outcome of the trial.  Current law only requires the payment of legal fees if the judgment is for the defendant on the right to condemn – and then the amount is limited.

H.B. 236 – Maryland Estate Tax – Exclusion for Family Farms Subject to Agricultural Preservation Easements – Delegate Glassman, referred to WAYS AND MEANS
This bill excludes from the Maryland Estate Tax the value of any real property that is subject to a MD Agland Preservation Foundation (MALPF) easement or a county Agland Preservation easement when it passes from the decedent to a spouse, parent, grandparent, child, spouse of a child, lineal descendant of a child or a brother or sister.

S.B. 2 – Maryland Estate Tax – Senator Currie, referred to BUDGET AND TAXATION|
This bill increases Maryland’s Unified Credit for estate tax from $1 million to $2 million.  The bill also limits the tax for the portion of the adjusted taxable estate in excess of $2 million to 16 percent.

S.B. 3 – Real Property – Condemnation – Procedures and Compensation – Senator DeGrange, Referred to JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS
This bill establishes that it is the intent of the General Assembly that a viable business or farm operation should be preserved whenever reasonable practicable and should not be acquired by condemnation for urban renewal or economic development purposes unless other alternatives are shown not to be reasonably practicable.  When it is necessary to take a business or a farm, the bill sets up a rigid set of disclosures, analysis and compensation that must be followed.  The bill requires that every effort be made to include the business or farm in the development plan.  If relocation is necessary funding for actual value, relocation costs and loss of “goodwill” relationships is mandated.

 S.B. 9 – Eminent Domain – Public Use – Senator Astle, referred to JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS
This bill mandates that private property may only be taken using eminent domain for “public use.”  The bill defines “public use” as the possession, occupation and enjoyment of land by the general public or a government entity.  The definition includes use by a public utility and acquisition to cure a concrete harmful effect of the current use of the land.  The bill specifies that “public use” does not include the public benefit of economic development, including an increase in tax base, tax revenue, employment or general economic health. 

 ---BB&T BANK TAKES A STAND AGAINST EMINENT DOMAIN---North Carolina-based BB&T Bank has announced that it will not provide loans for real estate development projects that involve the use of eminent domain to seize land from private landowners. The bank operates in 11 states in the Southeast as well as in Washington, D.C., and is the ninth-largest U.S. financial services company in terms of assets. BB&T is believed to be the first bank to announce a lending policy related to eminent domain since the Supreme Court’s June 2005 ruling in Kelo v. City of New London.

 ---QUESTIONS RAISED ABOUT ETHANOL USE AND E85 CARS---The soundness of 1988 U.S. legislation with a provision permitting automakers to build vehicles that operate on 15 percent ethanol (E85) gasoline to earn “flex-fuel credits” was recently questioned by an Associated Press editor. The flex-fuel credits are used by auto makers to qualify for building other vehicles with poorer mileage performance without penalty toward their total fleet mileage.

 There are very few flex-fuel cars using E85 gasoline, therefore, the editor’s contention is that there are more low mileage performance vehicles on the road burning more gasoline than would be the case without the federal flex-credit legislation. Lower fuel economy requirements resulting from flex-fuel credits between 1996 and 2000 “were responsible for increased petroleum consumption totaling 772 million gallons – enough gas for a Jeep Grand Cherokee to drive from San Diego to Boston and back more than 8,000 times,” wrote Tim Malloy of Associated Press in a Los Angeles dateline article. E85 is basically unavailable in California, and state officials are notorious for questioning the advantages of 10 percent ethanol gasoline, let alone E85.

 As noted by Malloy, ethanol supporters say that the flex-fuel cars have to be on the road before demand is sufficient for establishing more E85 fuel outlets and decreasing the use of non-ethanol containing gasoline. The additional use of ethanol is projected to skyrocket when E85 is more readily available.

 - - Outer Continental shelf natural gas relief act of 2005 - - On Nov. 22, 2005, Reps. John Peterson (R-Pa.) and Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) introduced H.R. 4318, the Outer Continental Shelf Natural Gas Relief Act of 2005.  The bill is designed to promote the development of natural gas resources in the Outer Continental Shelf by lifting the federal moratorium on leasing of OCS lands for natural gas exploration and development.  The bill would make no change as it relates to exploration for oil.  Reps. Peterson and Abercrombie are working actively to get cosponsors of the bill and it now has 117 members.

Farmers and ranchers are now facing historically high energy costs.  High natural gas prices are particularly onerous because they factor into fertilizer, irrigation and heating costs.  For a number of years, Federal energy policy has encouraged use of natural gas, particularly as a fuel for generating electricity, without making any effort to increase domestic supplies.  Unless we work aggressively to promote exploration and development of domestic natural gas reserves, we face continuing high fertilizer and energy costs.  Farm Bureau encourages all members to contact their Congressional representatives to urge them to cosponsor H.R. 4318, the Outer Continental Shelf Natural Gas Relief Act of 2005.  We will press for action on this bill and other pieces of legislation early in 2006 to help alleviate high energy prices by developing more domestic supply. 

The Hotline will be posted on the MFB website at the end of each week.  Our website address is www.mdfarmbureau.com.  The Maryland General Assembly’s website can also serve as a valuable tool for legislative information.  The Home Page offers the proceedings and agendas of the House and Senate, hearing schedules, bill information and status, and other data about the Maryland General Assembly.  Plus, there are links available to other related websites.  The website is updated nightly, and may be accessed at www.mlis.state.md.us .