Minnesota Land Trust

“Rose city (goodwin 2) 2000 - 190: technical; amendment to conservation easement. Rose city (rudd) 1994 - 05: modification consistent with conservation purpose; amended and restated conservation easement. Wild river state park (buisman) 1999 - 160: modification consistent with conservation purpose; there were ambiguities in the building envelope, agricultural use, mapping and old language. Amended and restated. Skunk lake (hedeen) 1998 - 122: modification consistent with conservation purpose; removed two building rights, updated language. Saint croix river (schaffer family): technical; legal description error, updated language for a restatement.”

“The minnesota land trust has extensive policies and procedures covering its conservation easement stewardship program. The ultimate responsibility of the land trust's conservation easement stewardship program is to preserve the conservation values associated with each property. Therefore, the land trust is prepared to legally defend and enforce its easements when necessary. Legal enforcement, however, is a remedy of last resort. The goals of the land trust's easement stewardship program include encouraging voluntary compliance whenever possible, establishing and maintaining good relationships with landowners and the communities in which our easements are located, documenting the condition of lands protected by each easement at the time the easement is completed and monitoring that condition over time, maintaining accurate records and being efficient and effective with the use of funds in supporting stewardship activities. Components of the stewardship program include: creating an appropriate baseline property report, easement administration, monitoring, landowner relations, community relations and easement enforcement and defense. The land trust has specific policies and procedures for each of these components. As one of the first nationally accredited land trusts in the country, these policies and procedures and their implementation by the land trust have passed land trust accreditation commission scrutiny. All conservation easements accepted by the minnesota land trust grant to the land trust expansive rights to enter, monitor and inspect the property. All easements also provide comprehensive enforcement rights and remedies for the land trust in the event of a violation and detail the limited circumstances under which the conservation easement could be modified or terminated.”

“Conservation easements accepted or purchased by the land trust are not recognized as assets or revenues in the accompanying financial statements because the land trust does not have fee title to the properties and there are no expected future economic benefits. If purchased, the costs of conservation easements are expensed when the easements are acquired. Purchases of conservation easements made with ohf or enrtf funds are shown as income in the acquisition accounts (4300 acq and related expense accounts (5540 acq). In fy18, one easement was purchased with funds from the restricted operating fund 3100era, which is shown as a release from restrictions. Only the purchase price of an easement is recorded; project costs such as title work, mapping and the like, are considered part of the land trust's core program expense.”

“The endowment fund was established to provide long-term operating support for the minnesota land trust.”

“A tax expense or benefit from an uncertain income tax position (including tax-exempt status) may be recognized only when it is more likely than not that the position will be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. Management believes the land trust has no uncertain income tax positions that would result in an accrual, expense or benefit under the more likely than not standard.”