Agricultural District programs allow farmers to form special areas where commercial agriculture is encouraged and protected. To increase viability, these programs offer automatic eligibility for differential tax assessment, property tax credits and/or tax exemptions. Agricultural District programs help create a more secure climate for agriculture by preventing local governments from passing laws that restrict farm practices and by enhancing protection from private nuisance lawsuits. Programs are typically authorized by state legislatures and implemented at the local level. Enrollment in agricultural districts is voluntary. In exchange for enrollment farmers receive a package of benefits that varies from state to state. Minimum acreage and terms of enrollment varies along with the package of incentives. Enrollment may also be required for eligibility in a PACE program.  

Some state governments allow property tax exemptions for farm buildings and equipment. These exemptions forgive the increase in assessed value that results from improvements such as new barns, silos, grain storage, greenhouses, farm labor housing, or even food preparation facilities. Farm machinery and equipment also may be exempt or exempt up to a specified monetary value. 

Some State Departments of Agriculture offer state-specific farm viability programs. Some of the most common services offered by these programs include technical assistance, grant opportunities, and business planning.  

For example, Massachusetts Department of Agriculture administers a Farm Viability Enhancement Program (FVEP) which provides business planning, technical assistance, and grants to commercial farms to improve farm viability and to preserve and support the stewardship of agricultural resources. 

The Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program offers business advising and grant opportunities to eligible farmers and agricultural businesses to complete projects that support the business development and long-term viability of Vermont farms. 

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture and the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board (KADB) administer the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund (KADF). This fund is used to invest in innovative proposals that increase net farm income and affect tobacco farmers, tobacco-impacted communities and agriculture across the state by stimulating markets for Kentucky agricultural products.

Tax incentives are widely used to maintain the economic viability of farming. All states have at least one program designed to reduce the amount of money farmers are required to pay in local real property taxes.  

The most important type of agricultural tax program is the differential assessment, also known as the current use assessment and use-value assessment. Nearly every state has a differential assessment program that allows officials to assess farmland at its agricultural use value, rather than its fair market value, which is generally higher. Three states—Michigan, New York, and Wisconsin —allow farmers to claim state income tax credits to offset their local property tax bills. These programs are called “circuit breakers” because they relieve farmers of real property taxes that exceed a certain percentage of their income. Iowa and New York offer a credit against school taxes on agricultural land. 

Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easement (PACE) programs compensate property owners for restricting the future use of their land. PACE may be known as Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) in many locations. Landowners voluntarily sell agricultural conservation easements to a government agency or private conservation organization that is responsible for enforcing the easement. Conservation easements restrict further development of the property and support farm viability while allowing landowners to retain other rights of ownership. 

Right-to-farm laws are designed to accomplish one or both of the following objectives: (1) to strengthen the legal position of farmers when neighbors sue them for private nuisance; and (2) to protect farmers from anti-nuisance ordinances and unreasonable controls on farming operations. All 50 states have some form of right-to-farm law, but the laws vary in their specific details. 

Agricultural Commission and Advisory Boards can be used to identify issues of concern, raise public awareness of the benefits of community food production, and ensure that local policies and regulations support agriculture’s business and land use needs. Communities can create formal or informal advisory boards to serve as the voice of agriculture in local affairs. They take many forms including agricultural commissions, Blue Ribbon panels, and other bodies to engage farmers in developing local policies and programs to support agriculture. Their size and composition vary by location and may include members of other local boards with related interests, such as a planning commission, zoning board, conservation district, or economic development commission.  

Communities can hire Agricultural Ombudsmen and Agricultural Development Staff or engage experts to advise farmers and ranchers on how to take advantage of new production and marketing opportunities—whether for traditional livestock and crop production, value-added processing, direct marketing, or things like energy production on farms. Some California counties have created “farmbudsperson” positions to work independently of regulatory staff to help farmers navigate the state’s complex regulatory process. Polk County, North Carolina, took the added step of creating a County Office of Agricultural Economic Development and hired a director to serve the county’s farmers and citizens by promoting local business and agriculture.

Geographic preference procurement policies support farm viability and increase access to local food in public institutions like schools, hospitals, and prisons by encouraging preference of locally grown and raised products. Most states have farm-to-school policies with programs to advance local procurement. 

 Livestock and Poultry Ordinances 

Livestock and Poultry Ordinances can expand options especially for urban and peri-urban producers. Many communities restrict raising livestock and poultry, especially in populated areas. Local governments can develop guidance for backyard livestock and poultry and ordinances to regulate activities. For example, some permit the keeping of livestock or domestic fowl as an accessory use on any lot of 2 acres or more, while some communities provide guidance to residents on backyard animal husbandry.

Grazing Ordinances 

Grazing Ordinances can be used to manage more delicate ecosystems such as drought prone rangelands. Proper grazing management can preserve land, water, forest, forage, and wildlife while supporting recreational values. Grazing ordinances can also support economic viability and stability. 

Farm Labor Housing Ordinances 

Safe and suitable lodging for farm labor is important to many farms, especially produce operations. Local governments may decide to be flexible about suburban standards for farm labor housing as long as it complies with public health and safety laws. For instance, they might allow a second or third house on a farm without triggering the need for multiple lots, or cabins to be used for seasonal housing. 

Setback and Buffer Ordinances 

Regulations such as setbacks and agricultural buffers reduce conflicts between farmers and non-farming neighbors by creating a space between them. This is especially important for livestock operations. Effective regulations protect existing operations and require new developments and subdivisions to create the setback or buffer. If substantial new development is occurring in a traditionally agricultural area, local governments can require a no-disturb zone. These ordinances call for a minimum setback between new residential properties and existing farmland, tied to the subdivision approval process and described in the property deed to alert potential buyers of the need to honor it. 

Right-to-farm ordinances provide nuisance protection from unduly restrictive regulations and neighbor complaints. They are especially important when new residents move into traditional farming communities and object to the noise, dust, smells, and slow-moving vehicles associated with agriculture. All 50 states have a right-to-farm law and some local governments have enacted ordinances to strengthen and clarify language in state law and to educate residents about agricultural activities. Local right-to-farm ordinances are widespread in California, where the state farm bureau developed and distributed model language.