The legislation, which has the support of President Bush, would allow landowners to exclude from income 50 percent of the gain on sales of land or easements made for conservation purposes. The legislation has been endorsed by The Nature Conservancy, Ducks Unlimited, The American Farm Bureau, Defenders of Wildlife, and the Association of State Foresters.
"Environmentally sensitive land is being snapped up at an alarming pace," explained Jeffords. "We need to pass this bill."
"This could be the most important conservation initiative this session of Congress," said Bob Klein, Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy of Vermont. "This bill will allow landowners to protect the ecological value of their landholdings without forfeiting the lands' economic value."
According to the U.S. Agriculture Department's Nature Resources Inventory, over the period 1982-1997 the total acreage of developed land increased by more than 25 million acres. Also in that period, Vermont lost 63,000 acres to development.
Jeffords is a member of the Senate Finance Committee, which considers all tax legislation.