Agricultural Exemption - with Honey Bees

Agricultural Valuation - aka "Ag Exemption" - with Honey Bees

Do you own 5 to 20 acres? Are you interested in saving hundreds, maybe even thousands on your property taxes each year?

If so, having honey bees can help you qualify. We sell bee hives with an established colony (seasonally), but for those that may not want to get into beekeeping, we also lease our pollination hives to land owners for a reasonable fee. We do everything to manage and maintain the bees, and you reap the rewards of the tax breaks.

Lease our Honey Bee hives to qualify for an Ag Valuation and leave the Beekeeping to us!

Texas law, effective January 1, 2012, made it possible for beekeeping to qualify for an Agricultural Valuation (commonly called "ag exemption" - see below) on property taxes. This is covered in the Tax Code under Chapter 23, Subchapter D, Sect. 23.51 (1) and (2).

An Agriculture Exemption is not actually an Exemption but rather a Special Valuation. If a portion or all of a property is deemed eligible to receive an Agricultural Valuation, that property will receive a Production Value along with its Market Value. The tax savings that a property receives depends on the current Market Value of the property and what type of Ag Valuation you are requesting. For example, Native Pasture areas can have a lower Ag valuation than Dry Crop areas and generally both are lower than the market value that the taxes would normally be based on.

There are several key phrases and requirements to this law. Sect. 23.51 (1) covers the definition of "qualified open-space land". Specifics state land that has an established agricultural use history for five of the preceding seven years. Record keeping is critical. Registration and permitting with Texas Apiary Inspection Service (TAIS) helps establish this history. Wording of the law states agricultural use to the degree of intensity generally accepted in the area. Each local appraisal district sets their own standards as the accepted degree of intensity. Most appraisal districts use a minimum of six colonies (beehives) as a standard. That is the accepted definition of an apiary from Texas bee law under the Agriculture Code, Title 6, subtitle A, Chapter 131, Sect. 131.001 (2).

Size of qualifying acreage is not less than 5 or more than 20 acres. Remember the definition of agriculture use. Losing an acre to a homestead exemption has to be accounted for on acreage.

Also, realize the landowner does not have to own the bees. You may lease the bees from a beekeeper. Again, keep accurate and complete records. The wording of the law states "the use of land to raise or keep bees for pollination or for the production of human food or other tangible products having a commercial value."

Lastly, it is important to stress the fact that each local appraisal district can set their own standards and requirements for the beekeeping valuation. Please contact your local appraisal district for guidance and minimum requirements. Most now have this information available on the county appraisal district website.

We are based just south of San Antonio, Texas. However, we cover a large portion of central and south Texas. Contact us to reserve bees for your property.