H.B. 221 Enrolled

1

AGRICULTURE AND INDUSTRIAL
2 PROTECTION AREA AMENDMENTS
3 2008 GENERAL SESSION
4 STATE OF UTAH
5 Chief Sponsor: John G. Mathis
6 Senate Sponsor: Margaret Dayton
7
8 LONG TITLE
9 General Description:
10 This bill modifies provisions relating to agriculture protection areas.
11 Highlighted Provisions:
12 This bill:
13 . requires county and municipal planning commissions to identify and consider
14 agriculture protection areas in drafting a land use element of a general plan and to
15 avoid uses that are inconsistent with or detrimental to agriculture in those areas;
16 . clarifies that an owner of land in an agriculture protection area or industrial
17 protection area may withdraw some or all of the owner's land from the area;
18 . prohibits a county or municipal legislative body from charging a fee for a petition to
19 remove land from an agriculture protection area or industrial protection area; and
20 . requires state agencies and political subdivisions to consider impacts on agriculture
21 protection areas and reasonably comparable alternatives when designating a
22 transportation corridor and to make reasonable efforts to minimize or eliminate
23 detrimental impacts on agriculture.
24 Monies Appropriated in this Bill:
25 None
26 Other Special Clauses:
27 None
28 Utah Code Sections Affected:
29 AMENDS:

30 10-9a-403, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2005, Chapter 245 and renumbered and
31 amended by Laws of Utah 2005, Chapter 254
32 17-27a-403, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2005, Chapter 245 and renumbered and
33 amended by Laws of Utah 2005, Chapter 254
34 17-41-306, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2006, Chapter 194
35 17-41-406, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2006, Chapter 194
36
37 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
38 Section 1. Section 10-9a-403 is amended to read:
39 10-9a-403. Plan preparation.
40 (1) (a) The planning commission shall provide notice, as provided in Section 10-9a-203 ,
41 of its intent to make a recommendation to the municipal legislative body for a general plan or a
42 comprehensive general plan amendment when the planning commission initiates the process of
43 preparing its recommendation.
44 (b) The planning commission shall make and recommend to the legislative body a
45 proposed general plan for the area within the municipality.
46 (c) The plan may include areas outside the boundaries of the municipality if, in the
47 planning commission's judgment, those areas are related to the planning of the municipality's
48 territory.
49 (d) Except as otherwise provided by law or with respect to a municipality's power of
50 eminent domain, when the plan of a municipality involves territory outside the boundaries of the
51 municipality, the municipality may not take action affecting that territory without the
52 concurrence of the county or other municipalities affected.
53 (2) (a) At a minimum, the proposed general plan, with the accompanying maps, charts,
54 and descriptive and explanatory matter, shall include the planning commission's
55 recommendations for the following plan elements:
56 (i) a land use element that:
57 (A) designates the long-term goals and the proposed extent, general distribution, and

58 location of land for housing, business, industry, agriculture, recreation, education, public
59 buildings and grounds, open space, and other categories of public and private uses of land as
60 appropriate; and
61 (B) may include a statement of the projections for and standards of population density
62 and building intensity recommended for the various land use categories covered by the plan;
63 (ii) a transportation and traffic circulation element consisting of the general location and
64 extent of existing and proposed freeways, arterial and collector streets, mass transit, and any
65 other modes of transportation that the planning commission considers appropriate, all correlated
66 with the population projections and the proposed land use element of the general plan; and
67 (iii) for cities, an estimate of the need for the development of additional moderate
68 income housing within the city, and a plan to provide a realistic opportunity to meet estimated
69 needs for additional moderate income housing if long-term projections for land use and
70 development occur.
71 (b) In drafting the moderate income housing element, the planning commission:
72 (i) shall consider the Legislature's determination that cities should facilitate a reasonable
73 opportunity for a variety of housing, including moderate income housing:
74 (A) to meet the needs of people desiring to live there; and
75 (B) to allow persons with moderate incomes to benefit from and fully participate in all
76 aspects of neighborhood and community life; and
77 (ii) may include an analysis of why the recommended means, techniques, or combination
78 of means and techniques provide a realistic opportunity for the development of moderate
79 income housing within the planning horizon, which means or techniques may include a
80 recommendation to:
81 (A) rezone for densities necessary to assure the production of moderate income
82 housing;
83 (B) facilitate the rehabilitation or expansion of infrastructure that will encourage the
84 construction of moderate income housing;
85 (C) encourage the rehabilitation of existing uninhabitable housing stock into moderate

86 income housing;
87 (D) consider general fund subsidies to waive construction related fees that are
88 otherwise generally imposed by the city;
89 (E) consider utilization of state or federal funds or tax incentives to promote the
90 construction of moderate income housing;
91 (F) consider utilization of programs offered by the Utah Housing Corporation within
92 that agency's funding capacity; and
93 (G) consider utilization of affordable housing programs administered by the Department
94 of Community and Culture.
95 (c) In drafting the land use element, the planning commission shall:
96 (i) identify and consider each agriculture protection area within the municipality; and
97 (ii) avoid proposing a use of land within an agriculture protection area that is
98 inconsistent with or detrimental to the use of the land for agriculture.
99 (3) The proposed general plan may include:
100 (a) an environmental element that addresses:
101 (i) the protection, conservation, development, and use of natural resources, including
102 the quality of air, forests, soils, rivers and other waters, harbors, fisheries, wildlife, minerals, and
103 other natural resources; and
104 (ii) the reclamation of land, flood control, prevention and control of the pollution of
105 streams and other waters, regulation of the use of land on hillsides, stream channels and other
106 environmentally sensitive areas, the prevention, control, and correction of the erosion of soils,
107 protection of watersheds and wetlands, and the mapping of known geologic hazards;
108 (b) a public services and facilities element showing general plans for sewage, water,
109 waste disposal, drainage, public utilities, rights-of-way, easements, and facilities for them, police
110 and fire protection, and other public services;
111 (c) a rehabilitation, redevelopment, and conservation element consisting of plans and
112 programs for:
113 (i) historic preservation; [and]

114 (ii) the diminution or elimination of blight; and
115 (iii) redevelopment of land, including housing sites, business and industrial sites, and
116 public building sites;
117 (d) an economic element composed of appropriate studies and forecasts, as well as an
118 economic development plan, which may include review of existing and projected municipal
119 revenue and expenditures, revenue sources, identification of basic and secondary industry,
120 primary and secondary market areas, employment, and retail sales activity;
121 (e) recommendations for implementing all or any portion of the general plan, including
122 the use of land use ordinances, capital improvement plans, community development and
123 promotion, and any other appropriate action;
124 (f) provisions addressing any of the matters listed in Subsection 10-9a-401 (2); and
125 (g) any other element the municipality considers appropriate.
126 Section 2. Section 17-27a-403 is amended to read:
127 17-27a-403. Plan preparation.
128 (1) (a) The planning commission shall provide notice, as provided in Section
129 17-27a-203 , of its intent to make a recommendation to the county legislative body for a general
130 plan or a comprehensive general plan amendment when the planning commission initiates the
131 process of preparing its recommendation.
132 (b) The planning commission shall make and recommend to the legislative body a
133 proposed general plan for the unincorporated area within the county.
134 (c) (i) The plan may include planning for incorporated areas if, in the planning
135 commission's judgment, they are related to the planning of the unincorporated territory or of the
136 county as a whole.
137 (ii) Elements of the county plan that address incorporated areas are not an official plan
138 or part of a municipal plan for any municipality, unless it is recommended by the municipal
139 planning commission and adopted by the governing body of the municipality.
140 (2) (a) At a minimum, the proposed general plan, with the accompanying maps, charts,
141 and descriptive and explanatory matter, shall include the planning commission's

142 recommendations for the following plan elements:
143 (i) a land use element that:
144 (A) designates the long-term goals and the proposed extent, general distribution, and
145 location of land for housing, business, industry, agriculture, recreation, education, public
146 buildings and grounds, open space, and other categories of public and private uses of land as
147 appropriate; and
148 (B) may include a statement of the projections for and standards of population density
149 and building intensity recommended for the various land use categories covered by the plan;
150 (ii) a transportation and traffic circulation element consisting of the general location and
151 extent of existing and proposed freeways, arterial and collector streets, mass transit, and any
152 other modes of transportation that the planning commission considers appropriate, all correlated
153 with the population projections and the proposed land use element of the general plan; and
154 (iii) an estimate of the need for the development of additional moderate income housing
155 within the unincorporated area of the county, and a plan to provide a realistic opportunity to
156 meet estimated needs for additional moderate income housing if long-term projections for land
157 use and development occur.
158 (b) In drafting the moderate income housing element, the planning commission:
159 (i) shall consider the Legislature's determination that counties should facilitate a
160 reasonable opportunity for a variety of housing, including moderate income housing:
161 (A) to meet the needs of people desiring to live there; and
162 (B) to allow persons with moderate incomes to benefit from and fully participate in all
163 aspects of neighborhood and community life; and
164 (ii) may include an analysis of why the recommended means, techniques, or combination
165 of means and techniques provide a realistic opportunity for the development of moderate
166 income housing within the planning horizon, which means or techniques may include a
167 recommendation to:
168 (A) rezone for densities necessary to assure the production of moderate income
169 housing;

170 (B) facilitate the rehabilitation or expansion of infrastructure that will encourage the
171 construction of moderate income housing;
172 (C) encourage the rehabilitation of existing uninhabitable housing stock into moderate
173 income housing;
174 (D) consider general fund subsidies to waive construction related fees that are
175 otherwise generally imposed by the county;
176 (E) consider utilization of state or federal funds or tax incentives to promote the
177 construction of moderate income housing;
178 (F) consider utilization of programs offered by the Utah Housing Corporation within
179 that agency's funding capacity; and
180 (G) consider utilization of affordable housing programs administered by the Department
181 of Community and Culture.
182 (c) In drafting the land use element, the planning commission shall:
183 (i) identify and consider each agriculture protection area within the unincorporated area
184 of the county; and
185 (ii) avoid proposing a use of land within an agriculture protection area that is
186 inconsistent with or detrimental to the use of the land for agriculture.
187 (3) The proposed general plan may include:
188 (a) an environmental element that addresses:
189 (i) the protection, conservation, development, and use of natural resources, including
190 the quality of air, forests, soils, rivers and other waters, harbors, fisheries, wildlife, minerals, and
191 other natural resources; and
192 (ii) the reclamation of land, flood control, prevention and control of the pollution of
193 streams and other waters, regulation of the use of land on hillsides, stream channels and other
194 environmentally sensitive areas, the prevention, control, and correction of the erosion of soils,
195 protection of watersheds and wetlands, and the mapping of known geologic hazards;
196 (b) a public services and facilities element showing general plans for sewage, water,
197 waste disposal, drainage, public utilities, rights-of-way, easements, and facilities for them, police

198 and fire protection, and other public services;
199 (c) a rehabilitation, redevelopment, and conservation element consisting of plans and
200 programs for:
201 (i) historic preservation; [and]
202 (ii) the diminution or elimination of blight; and
203 (iii) redevelopment of land, including housing sites, business and industrial sites, and
204 public building sites;
205 (d) an economic element composed of appropriate studies and forecasts, as well as an
206 economic development plan, which may include review of existing and projected county
207 revenue and expenditures, revenue sources, identification of basic and secondary industry,
208 primary and secondary market areas, employment, and retail sales activity;
209 (e) recommendations for implementing all or any portion of the general plan, including
210 the use of land use ordinances, capital improvement plans, community development and
211 promotion, and any other appropriate action;
212 (f) provisions addressing any of the matters listed in Subsection 17-27a-401 (2); and
213 (g) any other element the county considers appropriate.
214 Section 3. Section 17-41-306 is amended to read:
215 17-41-306. Adding land to or removing land from an agriculture protection area
216 or industrial protection area.
217 (1) (a) Any owner may add land to an existing agriculture protection area or industrial
218 protection area, as the case may be, by:
219 (i) filing a proposal with:
220 (A) the county legislative body, if the agriculture protection area or industrial protection
221 area and the land to be added are within the unincorporated part of the county; or
222 (B) the municipal legislative body, if the agriculture protection area or industrial
223 protection area and the land to be added are within a city or town; and
224 (ii) obtaining the approval of the applicable legislative body for the addition of the land
225 to the area.

226 (b) The applicable legislative body shall comply with the provisions for creating an
227 agriculture protection area or industrial protection area, as the case may be, in determining
228 whether or not to accept the proposal.
229 (2) (a) Any owner of land within an agriculture protection area or industrial protection
230 area may remove any or all of the land from [an] the agriculture protection area or industrial
231 protection area, respectively, by filing a petition for removal [of the land from the agriculture
232 protection area or industrial protection area, respectively,] with the applicable legislative body.
233 (b) (i) The applicable legislative body:
234 (A) shall:
235 [(A)] (I) grant the petition for removal of land from an agriculture protection area or
236 industrial protection area, as the case may be, even if removal of the land would result in an
237 agriculture protection area or industrial protection area of less than the number of acres
238 established by the applicable legislative body as the minimum under Section 17-41-301 ; and
239 [(B)] (II) in order to give constructive notice of the removal to all persons who have,
240 may acquire, or may seek to acquire an interest in land in or adjacent to the agriculture
241 protection area or industrial protection area and the land removed from the agriculture
242 protection area or industrial protection area, file a legal description of the revised boundaries of
243 the agriculture protection area or industrial protection area with the county recorder of deeds
244 and the affected planning commission[.]; and
245 (B) may not charge a fee in connection with a petition to remove land from an
246 agriculture protection area or an industrial protection area.
247 (ii) The remaining land in the agriculture protection area or industrial protection area is
248 still an agriculture protection area or industrial protection area, respectively.
249 (3) (a) If a municipality annexes any land that is part of an agriculture protection area or
250 industrial protection area located in the unincorporated part of the county, the county legislative
251 body shall, within 30 days after the land is annexed, review the feasibility of that land remaining
252 in the agriculture protection area or industrial protection area according to the procedures and
253 requirements of Section 17-41-307 .

254 (b) The county legislative body shall remove the annexed land from the agriculture
255 protection area or industrial protection area, as the case may be, if:
256 (i) the county legislative body concludes, after the review under Section 17-41-307 , that
257 removal is appropriate; and
258 (ii) the owners of all the annexed land that is within the agriculture protection area or
259 industrial protection area consent in writing to the removal.
260 (c) Removal of land from an agriculture protection area or industrial protection area
261 under this Subsection (3) does not affect whether that land may be:
262 (i) included in a proposal under Section 17-41-301 to create an agriculture protection
263 area or industrial protection area within the municipality; or
264 (ii) added to an existing agriculture protection area or industrial protection area within
265 the municipality under Subsection (1).
266 Section 4. Section 17-41-406 is amended to read:
267 17-41-406. Restrictions on state development projects.
268 (1) Each state agency that plans any development project that might affect land within
269 an agriculture protection area or industrial protection area shall submit its development plan to:
270 (a) the advisory board of the agriculture protection area or industrial protection area,
271 respectively; and
272 (b) in the case of an agriculture protection area, the commissioner of agriculture and
273 food.
274 (2) The commissioner of agriculture and food, in the case of an agriculture protection
275 area, and the advisory board shall:
276 (a) review the state agency's proposed development plan; and
277 (b) recommend any modifications to the development project that would protect the
278 integrity of the agriculture protection area or industrial protection area, as the case may be, or
279 that would protect the agriculture protection area from nonfarm encroachment or the industrial
280 protection area from nonindustrial encroachment.
281 (3) Each state agency and political subdivision of the state that designates or proposes

282 to designate a transportation corridor shall:
283 (a) consider:
284 (i) whether the transportation corridor would:
285 (A) be located on land that is included within an agriculture protection area; or
286 (B) interfere with agriculture production activities on land within an agriculture
287 protection area; and
288 (ii) each other reasonably comparable alternative to the placement of the corridor on
289 land within an agriculture protection area; and
290 (b) make reasonable efforts to minimize or eliminate any detrimental impact on
291 agriculture that may result from the designation of a transportation corridor.