Maryland Agriculture Section 2-510

      (a)      An owner of agricultural land located in an agricultural district established under this subtitle may offer by written application to sell an easement to the Foundation on the entire contiguous acreage of such agricultural land.

      (b)      In order to be considered by the Foundation, an application to sell shall:

            (1)      Be received by the board at a time the board determines for the fiscal year in which the application is to be considered;

            (2)      Include an asking price at which the owner is willing to sell an easement; and

            (3)      Include a complete description of the subject land.

      (c)      (1)      The board shall determine the maximum number of applications in each offer cycle.

            (2)      Applications received after the maximum number has been reached may be considered in the next available cycle.

      (d)      Within 30 days after the receipt of an application, the Foundation shall notify the landowner of the receipt and sufficiency of the application. If the original application is insufficient, the Foundation shall specify the reason for insufficiency, and the Foundation shall grant an additional 30 days for the landowner to remedy the insufficiency. If the application is made sufficient within 30 days of the notification by the Foundation, the application shall be considered as if it had originally been submitted in a timely and sufficient manner.

      (e)      (1)      (i)      Within 30 days after the receipt of an application to sell, the Foundation shall notify the governing body of the county containing the subject land, that an application to sell has been received.

                  (ii)      1.      Within 60 days of the notification, the county governing body shall advise the Foundation as to local approval or disapproval of the application. The Foundation shall grant a 30-day extension of this response period if the county governing body applies to the Foundation for an extension and states its reasons for seeking an extension.

                        2.      Upon local approval of the application, the county governing body shall submit a statement of the total current development rights on the subject land to the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation, along with the application approval notification. The statement shall include the total number of development rights that have been subdivided or transferred.

            (2)      In deciding whether to approve the application, the county governing body shall:

                  (i)      Receive the recommendation of the county agricultural preservation advisory board established under § 2-504.1 of this subtitle; and

                  (ii)      Rank all applications based on:

                        1.      Its locally established priorities as approved by the Foundation, which, for purposes of enhancing competitive bidding, may include a system that ranks properties in ascending order with respect to the proportion obtained by dividing the asking price by the value of the easement; and

                        2.      Guidelines adopted by the Foundation under paragraph (3) of this subsection.

            (3)      (i)      In consultation with county governing bodies, the Foundation shall adopt guidelines to identify easements for purchase that further the goals of the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Program.

                  (ii)      Guidelines adopted under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall include consideration of:

                        1.      Location in a priority preservation area of the county;

                        2.      Soil and other land characteristics associated with agricultural productivity;

                        3.      Agricultural production and contribution to the agricultural economy; and

                        4.      Any other unique county considerations that support the goals of the program.

            (4)      In making its recommendation, the county agricultural preservation advisory board shall:

                  (i)      Take into consideration criteria and standards established by the Foundation under this subtitle, current local regulations, local patterns of land development, the kinds of pressures to develop the subject land, State smart growth goals, and any locally established priorities for the preservation of agricultural land; and

                  (ii)      Recommend for ranking any application that qualifies and meets the priorities established by the county governing body for the preservation of agricultural land.

            (5)      The county agricultural preservation advisory board shall provide a public hearing concerning any application to sell if such a hearing is requested by a majority of the county agricultural preservation advisory board, or by a majority of the county governing body, or by the applicant.

            (6)      The board of trustees of the Foundation shall not approve any application to sell which has not been approved by the governing body of the county containing the subject land.

      (f)      (1)      In determining which applications it shall approve for the purchase of the easements offered for sale in each fiscal year under this section, the Foundation:

                  (i)      May approve only those applications in which the subject land meets the criteria and standards established under §§ 2-509 and 2-513 of this subtitle;

                  (ii)      Except as provided in subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph, rank the applications and submit offers to buy at the beginning of each offer cycle based on the approved priorities established by each eligible county for the preservation of agricultural land; and

                  (iii)      For applications competing on a statewide basis following the initial round of offers, shall rank the applications and submit offers to buy in order of priority, as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection.

            (2)      The Foundation shall adopt by regulation a standard priority ranking system for additional offers to buy by which it shall rank each application. The system shall be based on the following criteria as to the easements offered in any one county:

                  (i)      The applications shall be assigned a rank in ascending order with respect to the proportion obtained by dividing the asking price by the State easement value. The resulting rank shall be the sole criterion for establishing the priority for discounted applications that include proportions of 1.0 or lower.

                  (ii)      All additional applications which include proportions greater than 1.0 shall be assigned a numerical value that, in regard to the land for which the easement is offered, reflects:

                        1.      The relative productive capacity of the land;

                        2.      The extent to which the easement acquisition will contribute to the continued availability of agricultural suppliers and markets for agricultural goods; and

                        3.      The priority recommendations of the local governing bodies.

      (g)      The Foundation may approve general allotted purchases of easements in a county not to exceed in aggregate value the amount allotted for that county under § 2-508(b) for the fiscal year in which such purchases are made, plus any amount of transferred local open space funds designated by the local governing body for general purchases.

      (h)      The Foundation may approve matching allotted purchases of easements in an eligible county such that the Foundation's share will not exceed in aggregate value the amount allotted for that county under § 2-508(b) for that fiscal year.

      (i)      Upon approval of a majority of the board members at-large, and upon the recommendation of the State Treasurer and the Secretary, an application to sell shall be approved, and an offer to buy containing the specific terms of the purchase shall be tendered to the landowner. An offer to buy may specify terms, contingencies, and conditions not contained in the original application.

      (j)      (1)      With respect to allotted purchases, the Foundation shall tender any offer to buy containing the specific terms of the purchase on or before January 31 of the fiscal year in which the purchase is to be made.

            (2)      With respect to additional offers to buy tendered under § 2-508(c), the Foundation may not tender such offers earlier than 30 days after the completion of allotted purchases in each offer cycle.

            (3)      A landowner has 30 days from the date of any offer to buy in which to accept or reject the offer.

      (k)      (1)      At the time of settlement of the purchase of an easement, the landowner and the Foundation may agree upon and establish a schedule of payment such that the landowner may receive consideration for the easement in a lump sum, in installments over a period of up to 10 years from the date of settlement, or as provided in an installment purchase agreement under paragraph (3) of this subsection. At the time of settlement, the Foundation shall notify in writing each landowner who sells an agricultural easement to the Foundation of the schedule of anticipated ranges of interest rates to be paid on any unpaid balance after the date of settlement.

            (2)      (i)      If a schedule of installments is agreed upon, the Comptroller shall retain in the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Fund an amount of money sufficient to pay the landowner according to the schedule.

                  (ii)      The landowner shall receive interest on any unpaid balance remaining after the date of settlement. The State Treasurer shall invest the unpaid balance remaining after the date of settlement in a certificate or certificates of deposit at the maximum interest rate offered by a bank servicing the State or at such other institutions which pay the maximum interest rates payable on time and savings deposits at federally insured commercial banks selected by the Treasurer, to mature in accordance with an agreed upon schedule of installments as provided in this section. Any interest earned on the invested unpaid balance shall be paid with the installment when due, less 1/4 of 1 percent.

            (3)      (i)      The Foundation may pay the landowner according to a schedule, up to a maximum term of 15 years, established in an installment purchase agreement.

                  (ii)      The installment purchase agreement shall:

                        1.      Require that the Foundation make annual equal payments to the landowner of interest on the outstanding balance of the purchase price;

                        2.      Require that the Foundation pay the landowner the remainder of the purchase price at the end of the term;

                        3.      State the total amount of money the Foundation will pay the landowner, the interest rate, and the terms of the agreement; and

                        4.      Require that the easement be recorded within 30 days of settlement.

      (l)      (1)      On or before June 30, the Foundation shall notify all landowners whose applications had been rejected during that fiscal year. The Foundation shall specify the reasons for that rejection.

            (2)      A landowner whose application has been rejected for a reason other than insufficient Foundation funds may not reapply to sell an easement on the same land on the same terms until two years after the date of the original application.