AGRICULTURAL CONSERVATION EASEMENTS
KRS §
262.920. Agricultural Enhancement Fund
(1) (a) There is hereby created by this section a special fund in the State Treasury
which shall be known as the
"Agricultural Enhancement Fund." There shall be deposited in the fund:
1. Moneys received by the Commonwealth, from whatever source and by whatever
means, as gifts for purposes of retaining agricultural lands and supporting and
abetting agricultural practices and activities which shall improve conservation
and natural resource protection practices, enhance the viability of the
agriculture industry, and expand the economic contribution that agriculture
makes to the Commonwealth;
2. Moneys received by the Commonwealth, from whatever source and by whatever
means, as grants or loans for purposes of retaining agricultural lands and
supporting and abetting agricultural practices and activities which shall
improve conservation and natural resource protection practices, enhance the
viability of the agriculture industry, and expand the economic contribution
that agriculture makes to the Commonwealth;
3. Moneys received
by the Commonwealth including proceeds of bonds issued for the purpose of
funding the PACE Program as dedicated sources of revenue for the fund; and
4. Moneys appropriated to the fund.
(b) The fund shall be in the custody of the Commonwealth. All or any part of these
funds may be invested in any securities in which public funds may lawfully be
invested. All income derived from investments shall be paid into the fund and
become a part thereof. The moneys so invested shall at all times be subject to
withdrawal from investment for use as provided in this subsection.
(c) Upon authorization of the PACE board, the moneys in the fund may be used for:
1. The acquisition of agricultural conservation easements on eligible lands within
the Commonwealth;
2. The acquisition of options to purchase agricultural conservation easements on
eligible lands within the Commonwealth;
3. The costs of appraisal, engineering, surveying, planning, financial, legal, and
other services, and
applicable personnel costs lawfully incurred incident to the acquisition of
agricultural conservation easements in eligible lands and for monitoring and
enforcing easements on restricted lands;
4. The costs incident to the sale, issuance, and delivery of bonds, and to
securing funds from other revenue sources for the fund;
5. The provision of guarantees for loans that farmers participating in the PACE
Program may need to seek from lending institutions in order to carry out
agricultural operations, including loans for annual agricultural production,
agriculture- and conservation-related improvements, and changes in the types of
and methods employed for agricultural production on farmland tracts enrolled in
the PACE Program; and
6. Other expenditures as specified by the PACE board, providing that the
expenditures are consistent with KRS
262.900 to 262.920 and administrative regulations promulgated by the PACE board and
are for the express purpose of
retaining agricultural lands, supporting and abetting agricultural lands, and
supporting and abetting agricultural practices and activities which shall
improve conservation and natural resource protection practices, enhance the
viability of the agriculture industry, and expand the economic contribution
that agriculture makes to the Commonwealth.
(d) No more than ten percent (10%) of the moneys in the fund shall be expended in
any one (1) fiscal year to administer KRS
262.900 to 262.920.
HISTORY: Enact. Acts 1994, ch. 390,
ß 29, effective July 15, 1994.
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