The Pension Protection Act of 2006 significantly increases the deduction for donations of conservation easements for 2006 and 2007 and tightens the availability of deductions for facade easements. In this article from Leimberg Information Services, Boston attorney Joan B. Di Cola reviews these new rules along with new rules that apply to qualified appraisals, who can perform them, and new accuracy related penalties.  MORE »

IRC section 170(h)(1) provides an income tax charitable deduction for qualified conservation contributions of real property. In this article, University of Baltimore School of Law professor Wendy C. Gerzog discusses two recent tax court decisions that contrast how and how NOT to successfully plan such gifts.  MORE »

Roderick DeArment of Covington & Burling writing on behalf of the Land Trust Alliance has suggested that Congress could stop abuses in the donation of conservation easements by imposing strict rules that establish minimum qualifications for appraisers and appraisals and strict new penalties for inflated appraisals.  MORE »

"The rotten apple injures its neighbors," so Chaucer once said. In this comprehensive article, Boston attorney Stephen J. Small notes that a small number of "bad" conservation easement deals threaten to poison the well for otherwise successful, appropriate, and important private land conservation transactions if IRS enforcement is not targeted at the promoters, appraisers, and others engaged in the bad deals. Small also discusses the main tax and planning hurdles that make it difficult for a real estate developer to get a meaningful income tax deduction for the donation of a conservation easement, including the tricky question of whether a conservation easement is characterized as a capital asset or inventory. Finally, Small makes suggestions for better enforcement in this area, including presenting a list of questions the IRS might ask on a revised Form 8283, "Noncash Charitable Contributions," or other reporting form.  MORE »