Keep My Acres
Approval continues. So does the yearly check.
Ag valuation is called 1-d-1 open-space appraisal in the law. Once approved, it continues "without a new application unless the ownership of the land changes or its eligibility ... ends" under §23.54(e).
That does not mean the district stops checking. The Comptroller manual says the degree of intensity test "is examined in the year the property owner applies for special appraisal and every year thereafter". Your records need to show what is happening on the land now, not just what happened when you applied.
The district can require a new application by written notice if the chief appraiser has good cause to believe the land no longer qualifies. The applicant must clearly show the land qualifies. Records are how you show it.
Save records that match the work on your land
Keep the records for your type of use. Take dated photos each season. A receipt shows a purchase. A dated activity log records the work. Save both.
- Cattle, goats and sheep: Purchase and sale receipts, head counts by date, vet and worming records, feed and hay receipts, and records of fence and water work.
- Hay: Fertilizer and herbicide receipts, cutting dates, bale counts, sale receipts or feeding records. Keep a written lease if someone else cuts the hay.
- Timber: Your management plan, planting records, thinning and harvest records, and forester invoices.
- Wildlife: Your TPWD plan, annual reports, dated photos of each practice, census sheets, and receipts for feeders, water and nest boxes.
- Bees: Hive counts with dates and honey sale records.
Keep at least 5 years. The Comptroller manual says the owner’s "business records will help establish this history" for the 5-of-7-year test. Do not treat that practical record list as a complete statement of your district’s requirements. Ask the district in writing what it needs for your land and use.
Keep local requirements with your records
Published district guidelines show why a general checklist is only a starting point. These examples belong to the named districts. Do not assume they apply across East Texas.
- San Jacinto CAD applications: A management/business plan with rotation schedules is required with every ag application. Keep that plan with the records of the work.
- San Jacinto CAD timber: A current written forest management plan is required. Its wording is direct: "An outdated plan is not acceptable". Save harvest records, canceled checks for services, contracts of sale and land leases.
- San Jacinto CAD hay: Published guidelines call for heavy fertilizing at the first of the year, typically proof of two cuttings, and no animals on the hayfield.
- Trinity CAD horse breeding: Horse breeders "must be able to produce proof of sale of colts." Keep those sale records.
- Walker CAD wildlife: Guidelines call for a yearly Wildlife Status Survey, photos and periodic on-site reviews.
For requirements not settled here, ask your district in writing. Keep its answer with your plan and activity records.
Keep wildlife reports separate from the plan
A wildlife plan and a yearly report serve different purposes. Keep the plan, then save the reports, dated practice photos, census sheets and receipts alongside it.
Under the Comptroller wildlife guidelines, a district may require a yearly report on the TPWD form PWD-888. The guidelines also state: "No penalty or late fee may be assessed in the event the annual report is filed late."
That wording addresses a penalty or late fee for a late annual report. It does not answer every question about whether your land qualifies. Ask your district in writing which report it requires and when it expects it.
Read a written request before sending records
Under §23.57(b), when the district needs more information, it asks in writing. You have 30 days to answer or the application is denied. One extension of up to 15 days is available for good cause.
A records request has a deadline. If you need an extension, ask the district in writing. Ask it to confirm the extension and response deadline in writing.
Keeping a document does not mean you are required to hand it over. The Comptroller manual says income statements, tax returns, lease rates and lease agreements are "not necessary to determine whether the land qualifies." You are not required to provide those documents, though keeping them can help you.
If a request raises questions about those records, ask the district in writing what information it needs. Keep the request and its answer together.
Record changes. Do not wait for a district check.
Under §23.54(h), you must notify the district in writing before May 1 after eligibility ends or after a change in category of ag use.
Failing to notify brings a penalty of 10% of the tax difference for each year the valuation was wrongly allowed. Under §23.54(j), the district can go back up to five preceding years.
Owners 65 or older receive extra notice before a change of use is decided under §23.551. For questions about how that notice applies, ask the district in writing.
Keep your written notices with your land records. If you are unsure whether a change affects eligibility or changes the category of use, ask the district in writing. Keep the answer. Your file should show the work on the land and what you told the district.
Your county
General information, not legal or tax advice. Your appraisal district makes the final call.