Extension Hydrology Specialist Dr. Ken Tate recently shared via his web site (http://rangelandwatersheds.ucdavis.edu/main/IGERT_Williamson_Act.html) the results of research on what would happen if the Williamson Act ended. This is important to share with policy makers and for ranchers and environmental stewards to read. As most of you know, the Williamson Act (WA) is a land conservation program.
Private landowners sign contracts with counties, promising to keep their land in agricultural use for set periods of time. In exchange, they receive a significant reduction in property taxes. The state subsidizes individual counties, paying them for some of the property tax base they lose by having landowners enrolled in the program. The WA protects more than 10 million acres in California classified as "non-prime" land. This "non-prime" land is predominantly used for cattle grazing.
To understand rancher responses to the loss of the WA, researchers at UC Davis surveyed 700 members of the California Cattlemen's Association. The results of that study are reported in a recent Cal Ag paper that can be downloaded here: http://rangelandwatersheds.ucdavis.edu/publication%20list%20and%20files/CalAG_WillaimsonAct_Wetzel_et_al_2012.pdf.
Also a fact sheet or policy brief was recently released on October 15, 2012 that summarizes the results. It is available at: http://reach.ucdavis.edu/downloads/WilliamsonActFactsheetUCDavis.pdf