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Big Sky and Tax Deductions: Motivators that Drive the Private Landowner Network

Wide open range land, narrow profit margins, big sky, high taxes, tall southern pines, growing debt: factors driving the Private Landowner Network or PLN.

Wide open range land. Narrow profit margins. Big sky. High taxes. Tall southern pines. Growing debt.

These are the reasons that we at the Private Landowner Network (PLN) do what we do. We treasure the beauty of a working landscape and respect the working landowner as much as any kind of open space or stewardship.

What is it that we do?
We seek to bring together, in one easy-to-use internet destination, all of the information that private landowners could need to keep their land in the family or to keep their family on the land. We also provide technical information for resource professionals, whether legal, stewardship or conservation oriented. 

A Neutral Nonpartisan Information Source

We are neutral and non-advocacy. We have access to some of the best minds in the business when it comes to farmland, ranch land, forest and land conservation tools for private landowners.

My name is Amos Eno, and I’ve been working to protect and respect private working lands in one way or another for most of my life. My 35-year career spans from federal resource agency administration to legislative appropriations to local site-based conservation projects.  For example, while I was Executive Director at the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, we approved the founding grant for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Private Lands program. With each passing year, I’ve appreciated the importance of private land more, and that’s why I started the PLN suite of websites.

Here in this blog, I’ll be sharing with you breaking news about issues and opportunities that affect private landowners, whether legislative, legal, profit-enhancing, or human interest. I’ll lay out all the reasons that I believe private lands are so important to the future of the United States. I’ll give you tips about how to best use our growing family of private landowner websites. I’ll also be sharing the insights and experiences of people I meet in the field - people who are, perhaps, just like you.

Tax Deduction Extension for 2010

Here is tip number one:  take a look at the Conservation Tax Center(CTC) for important news on the status of “The American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010.” Congress is playing catchup, after allowing important tax deductions to lapse at the end of 2009.  

After passing in the House of Representatives two weeks ago, the American Jobs bill was taken up by the Senate this week. If passed, it will extend the special rule regarding contributions of capital gain real property for conservation purposes for one year, through 2010. Our CTC site contains an excellent summary of the bill and what it means for farmers and ranchers. For more detailed information, find qualified local counsel and tax providers in your state at CTC or PLN.

Let Us Hear From You

I’m always learning, so feedback is encouraged! Please share with us your questions, your ideas, your endorsements, your needs, and your disagreements. Let the more than 41,000 unique visitors who access our sites each month know what you think. Check back again next week, or you can sign up for our RSS feed to be automatically notified of new posts to this blog.