Peace Garden News

Congresswomen Julie Fedorchak and Harriet Hageman have put forth the Landowner Easement Rights Act, a legislative proposal set to limit the Department of Interior’s role in conservation easements. This act restricts the duration of new conservation easements to a maximum of 30 years. It enables landowners to renegotiate, renew, or repurchase their conservation easements at fair market value if they wish.

Fedorchak emphasized that North Dakota landowners manage natural resources well and should not have their properties tied up indefinitely by the federal government. She stated, “Easements shouldn't last multiple generations. This bill restores balance, gives landowners flexibility, and allows them the freedom to reassess, renegotiate, and reclaim control over their property. Conservation should be a partnership, not a one-sided permanent restriction.”

Hageman pointed out the existing issues with perpetual conservation easements, where property rights are ceded to third parties acting more as government agents. She noted, “Under our current system of perpetual conservation easements, the devil is in the details...This bill ends the current policy and allows a landowner to enter into time-limited conservation easements, thereby ensuring that each generation can make decisions regarding their property.”

Margaret Byfield, Executive Director of American Stewards for Liberty, supported the bill and remarked, “No one has the right to permanently impair the property rights of future generations. Rep. Hageman and Fedorchak’s 'Landowner Easement Rights Act' limit the easements held by the Department of the Interior to 30 years. This is a vital step in making the property rights whole again and reducing the stranglehold the federal government has over landowners.”

Conservation easements are agreements allowing landowners to use their properties while removing development rights in favor of conservation goals, often yielding tax benefits. However, many landowners remain unaware of the restrictions on property rights and future land use changes. These arrangements are often managed by entities aligned with governmental objectives, sometimes at odds with the owners’ preferences.