Knowledgebase
Ag Tax Exemption Question #745494
Asked April 21, 2021, 12:44 PM EDT
Travis County Texas
Expert Response
Good afternoon Ms Taylor,
Open-land valuation for property allows for a minimum of five (5) acres (six acres if there is a homesite or future homesite) up to a maximum of 20 acres, for beekeeping. The minumum acreage requires six (6) beehives;p nineteen (19) acres requires 13 beehives. If you wish to maintain the "ag exemption," the bees would be the route to take this year. That will allow you time to implement your wildlife plan. I would suggest that you consider enlisting the services of a professional beekeeper because the bees could be deployed quickly - probably within a month or two. Also, costs will probably approach $600 per hive by the time one purchases the nucs, the beehives, beekeepers suit and other ancillary equipment. It is late for this year to try to get into the beekeeping business unless one can buy out a beekeeper who would like to close. For a wildlife exemption, one must have an approved wildlife management plan and conduct and document at last three of seven approved wildlife management practices each year.
I would like to visit with you a little more about your intended use with respect to cattle, wildlife and restoring some of the land to native blackland prairie.
There also is another, lesser-known, option and that is an ecological laboratory. Basically, one would enter into an agreement with a university researcher to conduct studies under a written and approved plan and reports would be filed annually.
I you wish to share your E-Mail address, I would be happy to send you a pdf file with the "Guidelines for the Appraisal of Open-space Land." This document covers the guidelines for agricultural land, Wildlife Management, Beekeeping, and Ecological Laboratory. Please feel free to contact me directly if you wish. I wish you much success in achieving your desires to optimize the use of your land.
All the best,
Noel Troxclair
County Extension Agent-Ag/Natural Resources
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Travis County
1600B Smith Road, Austin, Texas 78721
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