HARTFORD – Gov. Ned Lamont has ordered state Office of Policy and Management (OPM) Interim Secretary Joshua Wojcik to reinstate 2020 land use values for owners of farmland, open space and maritime heritage land.
The governor made the directive in a letter transmitted Monday.
“Family farms are vital to Connecticut’s economy and are an essential part of our heritage,” Lamont said. “Preserving Connecticut’s farmland and open spaces is critical to maintaining a reliable source of food and farm products, conserving our natural resources, and promoting the welfare and happiness of our residents.
“Our work to address concerns around rising land use values demonstrates our understanding of the challenges farmers face. Preserving these lands is about more than economics, it’s about sustaining a way of life that defines Connecticut.”
Due to an unforeseen lack of data in establishing assessment values for these lands as required by Connecticut General Statutes § 12-2b(1), significant increases in valuations occurred for the tax years beginning with the 2025 grand list. To address this, Governor Lamont has directed OPM, in consultation with the Connecticut Department of Agriculture, to:
- Revoke the 2025 Recommended Land Use Values and Best Practices for farmland, forestland, open space, and maritime heritage land, and reinstate the 2020 recommended land use values for these categories.
- Immediately notify all municipal tax assessors of this revocation and reinstatement.
- Convene a working group in collaboration with the Connecticut Department of Agriculture, including representation from agricultural organizations, farmers, municipal leaders, and assessors, to recommend alternative measures to improve data collection, review, and valuation processes consistent with state law.
“OPM is committed to ensuring that tax policies support, not burden, the people who work our land and preserve our open spaces,” Wojcik said. “We will work closely with farmers, municipal leaders, legislators, and others to develop fair and practical solutions that keep agriculture thriving for generations to come.”
Paul Larson, president of the Connecticut Farm Bureau, was appreciative of the governor’s action taken at a time when property values throughout Connecticut – and the country – have increased substantially since the end of the 2020 pandemic.
“On behalf of the Connecticut Farm Bureau and our members, I want to express our sincere appreciation to Governor Lamont and Agriculture Commissioner Hurlburt for their leadership in acknowledging the vital role farming plays in our state’s economy and communities,” Larson said. “Their commitment to addressing concerns over the Public Act 490 land use values demonstrates a deep understanding of the challenges farmers face and the importance of this program to keeping farmland accessible for future generations.”
State Senate Republicans (Sen. Stephen Harding, Sen. Heather Somers, Sen. Ryan Fazio, and Sen. Jeff Gordon) issued a statement regarding Lamont’ actions.
“This happened thanks to our hard-working Connecticut farmers who have spoken out and the 20,000 people who signed the SaveCTLand.org petition in less than a week. But it’s really just crisis intervention.”
We must learn the methodology that was used by state government to bring about those outrageous and unjustified increases.
We thank the governor for listening, but clearly there is more legislative work to be done.
We and our Republican colleagues have listened – and we have acted – to start fixing this huge farmland tax spike problem.”
