Assemblyman Alex Sauickie’s bill exempting preserved farmland from the realty transfer fee if it is transferred to a qualified beginning farmer passed the Assembly Agriculture Committee on Monday. 

Sauickie argues the bill (A1506) is needed to encourage a new generation of farmers who will commit to growing the success of the state’s agriculture industry and farmland preservation program. 

“New Jersey’s Farmland Preservation Program has helped protect more than 2,875 farms and 250,000 acres of farmland, but we cannot rely on that program alone to sustain the industry. We need to support our 18,500 producers and beginning farmers who are working to keep farming alive in the state, and we do that by removing barriers like cost,” Sauickie (R-Ocean) said. “Eliminating the realty transfer fee is an easy way to incentivize new farmers to follow in the footsteps of an established workforce considering a well-earned retirement.”

According to the 2022 Census of Agriculture, about 30% of New Jersey farmers are new and beginning farmers with less than 10 years of experience, while two-thirds are 55 or older. The average age of farmers in New Jersey is 58.7. 

The bill is similar to a provision in the Pennsylvania Farm Bill that exempts owners of preserved farms from the state’s realty transfer fee when they are purchased by certified beginning farmers.