MADISON, WI (AP)-- The Assembly's forestry committee is set to hold a public hearing on a bill that would overhaul Wisconsin's managed forests program.
Landowners in the program get substantial property tax breaks if they keep their land open for recreation and adopt a state-approved plan to manage timber harvest on the property. Landowners who enter the program but keep their land closed to the public get smaller tax breaks and must pay an additional fee.
The Republican-authored bill would eliminate the 160-acre cap on closed lands, allow buildings on program land and eliminate taxes on timber from program lands. It also would allow local governments to keep 80 percent of acreage fees. Right now all the fees go to the state.
