{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-262.850","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 262.850","heading":"Short title -- Establishment of agricultural districts -- Legislative purpose -","body":"- Procedure -- Periodic review -- Withdrawal from membership -- Public\nhearing on condemnation -- Definition of \"feasible alternative location\" --\nRequirement to demon strate lack of feasible alternative location in certain\neminent domain actions -- Notification of membership to property valuation\nadministrator.\n(1) This section shall be known as \"the Agricultural District and Conservation Act.\"\n(2) It is the polic y of the state to conserve, protect, and to encourage development and\nimprovement of its agricultural lands for the production of food and other\nagricultural products. It is also the policy of this state to conserve and protect the\nagricultural land base as a valuable natural resource which is both fragile and finite.\nThe pressure imposed by urban expansion, transportation systems, water\nimpoundments, surface mining of mineral resources, utility rights -of-way, and\nindustrial development has continually redu ced the land resource base necessary to\nsufficiently produce food and fiber for our future needs. It is the purpose of this\nsection to provide a means by which agricultural land may be protected and\nenhanced as a viable segment of the state's economy and as an important resource.\n(3) The local governing administrative body for an agricultural district shall be the\nconservation district board of supervisors. The Soil and Water Conservation\nCommission shall be responsible for statewide administration of the a gricultural\ndistrict program and shall have sole authority to certify or deny agricultural district\npetitions. The commission may apply for assistance and funds from the Federal\nFarmland Protection Act of 1981, Pub. L. No. 97 -377, which may be available fo r\nthe development of the agricultural district program and may accept easements as\nprovided in KRS 65.410 to 65.480.\n(4) Any owner or owners of land may submit a petition to the local conservation\ndistrict board of supervisors requesting the creation of an  agricultural district within\nthe county. The petition shall include a description of the proposed area, description\nof each land parcel, location of the proposed boundaries, petitioners' names and\naddresses, adjacent landowners' names and addresses, and o ther pertinent\ninformation as required in the petition application. The boundary of an agricultural\ndistrict shall be contiguous. Land shall not be included in an agricultural district\nwithout the consent of the owner.\n(5) Upon receipt of a petition, the l ocal conservation district board of supervisors shall\nnotify the fiscal court and any local or regional planning or zoning body, if any, of\nthe proposed agricultural district, and shall notify each city that is located less than\none (1) mile from the bound aries of the proposed agricultural district by sending a\ncopy of the petition and accompanying materials to that body.\n(6) The following factors shall be considered by the local conservation district board of\nsupervisors and the Soil and Water Conservation Commission when considering the\nformation of any agricultural district:\n(a) The capability of the land to support agricultural production, as indicated by:\nsoil, climate, topography or other natural factors;\n(b) The viability of active farmlands, as indic ated by markets for farm products,\nthe extent and nature of farm improvements, the present status of farming, and\nanticipated trends in agricultural economic conditions and technology;\n(c) That the proposed agricultural district meets the minimum size limi t of fifty\n(50) contiguous acres, unless the local conservation district board and the Soil\nand Water Conservation Commission allow fewer than fifty (50) contiguous\nacres if the proposed area meets a minimum annual production performance\nestablished by the district board and approved by the commission;\n(d) County development patterns and needs and the location of the district in\nrelation to any urban development boundaries within the county;\n(e) Any matter which may be relevant to evaluate the petition; and\n(f) Whether an application is from more than one (1) farm owner, in which case a\npreference shall be given to the application.\n(7) The local soil and water conservation district board of superv isors shall review the\npetition application and submit a recommendation to the Soil and Water\nConservation Commission within one hundred (100) days of receipt. The local\nconservation district recommendation shall be submitted to the commission in the\nform of approval, approval with modifications, or denial of the petition\naccompanied by justification for such a denial.\n(8) The Soil and Water Conservation Commission shall review the recommendation of\nthe district board of supervisors and certify or deny the agricultural district's\npetition within one hundred (100) days of receipt.\n(9) Upon the approval of a petition by the Soil and Water Conservation Commission,\nthe commission shall notify the area development district in which the agricultural\ndistrict will lie, the local county clerk, the clerk of each city that is located less than\none (1) mile from the boundaries of the approved agricultural district, and the\nsecretary of the Governor's Executive Cabinet by sending a description of the\nboundaries and the names and addresses of the property owners within the district.\n(10) Land within the boundary of an agricultural district shall not be annexed.\n(11) The owners of land within the boundary of an agricultural district shall be exempt\nunder KRS 74.177 from any  assessment authorized for the extension of water\nservice lines until the land is removed from the district and developed for\nnonagricultural use.\n(12) Any member, or any successor heir of the member, of an agricultural district may\nwithdraw his or her pro perty from the district upon notifying the local conservation\ndistrict board of supervisors in writing. The removal of the property from the\nagricultural district shall be effective immediately upon the district board of\nsupervisors' receipt of the written  notification, at which time the district board of\nsupervisors shall remove the property from the agricultural district and shall\nimmediately provide written notice of the changed boundaries to those entities\nlisted in subsection (9) of this section.\n(13) It shall be the policy of all state agencies to support the formation of agricultural\ndistricts as a means of preserving Kentucky's farmlands and to mitigate the impact\nof their present and future plans and programs upon the continued agricultural use\nof land within an agricultural district.\n(14) Agricultural districts shall be comprised only of agricultural land as defined in KRS\n132.010.\n(15) An agricultural district shall be established for five (5) years with a review to be\nmade by the local soil and wa ter conservation district board of supervisors at the\nend of the five -year period and every five (5) years thereafter. Each owner of land\nshall agree to remain in the district for a five (5) year period, unless a member\nelects to withdraw his or her proper ty pursuant to subsection (12) of this section,\nwhich is renewable at the end of the five (5) years. However, the board shall make a\nreview any time upon the written request of a local government which demonstrates\nthat the review is necessary in order to consider development needs of the local\ngovernment. The board shall consider whether the continued existence of the\ndistrict is justified, any adjustments which may be necessary due to urban or county\ndevelopment, and other factors the board finds relevant . The board shall revise the\ndistrict as necessary based on the review and subject to approval of the State Soil\nand Water Conservation Commission. Before the state commission takes final\naction, all interested parties shall be given the opportunity to req uest the state\ncommission to amend or overturn the local board's decision.\n(16) The withdrawal of a member from a district reducing the remaining acreage of\nagricultural district land to less than fifty (50) acres or resulting in the remaining\nland being n oncontiguous shall not cause the decertification of the district. The\nlocal district board of supervisors may consider a dissolution of the agricultural\ndistrict if the withdrawal results in the remaining property within the agricultural\ndistrict no longer  meeting the definition of agricultural land as defined in KRS\n132.010.\n(17) (a) As used in this subsection, \"feasible alternative location\" means a location\nthat:\n1. Impacts the same property but does not impact the agricultural district\non the property; and\n2. Does not materially increase the cost of the project.\n(b) Any member of an agricultural district who has received a summons of\ncondemnation proceedings being instituted concerning the member's land\nlocated in the district may request the local soil and water conservation district\nboard of supervisors to hold a public hearing on the proposed taking of land.\n(c) In a condemnation action under the Eminent Domain Act of Kentucky, KRS\n416.540 to 416.670, involving privately owned property that is located in an\nagricultural district, the condemnor shall provide a sworn written report to the\ncourt justifying the condemnation of the specific property at issue due to the\nlack of feasible alternative locations to satisfy the purposes of the project\nunless the condemnation action:\n1. Is initiated by a city, county, municipal utility, investor -owned utility,\nutility cooperative, water district, or water association; and\n2. Involves easements for utilities that do not interfere with agricultural\noperations or result in a taking of agricultural infrastructure.\n(d) If the court, in its discretion, determines that the report does not demonstrate a\nlack of feasible alternative locations to satisfy the purposes of the project, the\ncondemnation action shall be dismissed in accordance with KRS 416.610(4).\n(e) This subsection shall not prevent a property owner from:\n1. Challenging the necessity of condemnation for the project; or\n2. Offering other feasible alternative locations to satisfy the purposes of the\nproject.\n(18) (a) The board shall notify the local property valuation administrator of the farms\nwhich belong to an agricultural district and whenever a farm is withdrawn\nfrom a district. The board shall also inform all members of a district of the\nright to have their la nd assessed by the local property valuation administrator\nat the land's agricultural use value and shall offer advice and assistance on\nobtaining such an assessment.\n(b) The board shall also notify the local property valuation administrator\nwhenever a farm is released or withdrawn from an agricultural district.\n(19) The board may allow an amendment to an existing certified agricultural district if\napproved by the commission.","path":["KRS Chapter 262"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=56847","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:53:12Z","sha256":"69479097ca35cacfb2b283e8e373458e4f18eb8ec7977da8b94e833a8f148380","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-262.795","next":"us-ky/krs-262.875"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}