Definitions

(1) Terms in this chapter share those meanings of terms in T.C.A. § 43-1-110. (2) When used in this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise: (a) “Act” means T.C.A. § 43-1-110; (b) “Agricultural land” means a parcel that, at the time of application: 1. Contains less than 75% forest cover; and 2. Any portion of the parcel is: (i) Zoned agricultural by a competent jurisdiction; (ii) Classified as farm property, under T.C.A. §§ 67-5-501 et seq., by the county assessor in the county where the parcel is located; or (iii) Enrolled with the State Board of Equalization for Greenbelt classification as agricultural land. (c) “Captive insurance” means self-insurance wholly owned by its group of land trust members; FARMLAND PRESERVATION CHAPTER 0080-01-04 (d) “Commerce” means involving payment for an item or payment for services incident to production of the item; (e) “Common ownership” means ownership in fee simple and that for all deeds relative to land within a parcel, the owners and their ownership relationships stated in the deeds are the same. This definition does not preclude variations in titles, suffixes, or use of owners’ alternate names on deeds provided that the sameness of the persons is established; (f) “Conservation defense insurance” means an insurance product for provision of financial and legal resources benefitting the investigation, defense, and enforcement of conservation easements, including but not limited to coverage of legal fees, expert witness costs, court costs, settlement expenses, and damages arising from disputes or violations regarding conservation easements’ validity and enforcement; (g) “Department” means the Tennessee Department of Agriculture; (h) “Farm products” and “nursery stock” have the same meaning as provided under T.C.A. § 43-1-113; (i) “Forest land” means a parcel containing at least 75% forest cover; (j) “FSA” means United States Department of Agriculture, Farm Services Agency; (k) “Fund” means the farmland preservation fund created under the Act and administered by the department; (l) “Greenbelt” means the Agricultural, Forest and Open Space Land Act of 1976, codified at T.C.A. §§ 67-5-1001, et seq.; (m) “Parcel” means the property for which application to participate in the program is made. For purposes of this definition, boundaries of a parcel are wholly defined by the parcel owners seeking participation in the program and may be different than the boundaries for the larger lot on which the parcel is located, as otherwise stated in either its deed or the assessor’s map for the property; (n) “Person” means an individual, partnership, corporation, or any other form of legal entity; (o) “Program” means the farmland preservation program for funding of conservation easements administered by the department and funded under the Act; (p) “Qualified easement holder” or “holder” mean a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, registered in good standing with the Tennessee Office of the Secretary of State, and that is either: 1. Accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission; or 2. Capable of showing coverage under a conservation defense insurance policy issued by a captive insurance body authorized to issue policies in this state. (q) “Site index” means the total height to which dominant trees of a given species are expected to grow on a given site at some index age, where dominant trees are the tallest trees in the stand; and (r) “USDA” means United States Department of Agriculture. FARMLAND PRESERVATION CHAPTER 0080-01-04