Rep. Clay Doggett proposes grant fund to support Tennessee's rural counties

Press Release

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – State Rep. Clay Doggett, R-Pulaski, has proposed legislation to establish a grant fund to support rural communities across the Volunteer State.

The Greenbelt Initiative Fund Transfer (GIFT) Act, or House Bill 2375, would create a $210 million Rural Revenue Equity Fund to help support various services and projects in eligible rural communities. The program seeks to offset property tax revenue lost in counties with high percentages of greenbelt-classified property, which are taxed on use value instead of market value.

"The greenbelt program is an important part of our continued efforts to preserve Tennessee's agricultural heritage," said Doggett. "Rural counties often have significantly higher percentages of land classified as greenbelt, which limits local tax revenue needed for essential services. The GIFT Act will support these communities by allocating additional funding to benefit vital projects while recognizing the families and farms that make the Volunteer State unique."

Funding from the Rural Revenue Equity Fund could be used for law enforcement, firefighter and emergency medical services, property tax stabilization, and capital improvement and infrastructure projects. The proposal requires the state treasurer to invest the fund's assets, with all interest credited to the fund.

Rural counties would be awarded funding based on a total weighted score that considers its percentage of total land under greenbelt; total acres of land in greenbelt; annual agricultural sales or taxable agricultural receipts; whether the county has statutory authority to levy a development tax or impact fee; the number of economic outputs of licensed livestock or dairy farms; population; and whether the county adopted a property tax increase during the preceding five years.

Counties with 70% or more of land classified under greenbelt will receive the highest scores. Currently, at least 26 counties across the state meet this criterion, including Lincoln County (86.3%), Giles County (84.8%), Hardeman County (81.9%), and Fayette County (78%). Approximately 51 counties are qualified as rural and would be eligible for this grant.

Applications would be submitted to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, which will administer the grant program.

Tennessee’s Greenbelt Law, originally passed in 1976, helps preserve agricultural, forest and open space land by taxing it based on its current use and not its potential for development. Without greenbelt protections, landowners could face higher property taxes that make it harder to keep land in agriculture or conservation, leading to increased pressure to sell or develop.

House Bill 2375 will be considered in the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee in the coming weeks.

State Rep. Clay Doggett represents District 70 in the Tennessee House of Representatives, which includes Giles and part of Lawrence and Lincoln counties.