Williamson Act

The Williamson Act, also known as the California Land Conservation Act of 1965, enables local governments to enter into contracts with private landowners for the purpose of restricting specific parcels of land to agricultural or related open space use. In return, landowners receive property tax assessments which are much lower than normal because they are based upon farming and open space uses as opposed to full market value. (Language from the California Department of Conservation website)

The Williamson Act is largely regulated under Chapter 7 of the California Government Code, Sections 51200 - 51297.4 (see below resource link for more information). On top of these regulations, each county can add additional requirements and/or restrictions. Calaveras County additionally uses the requirements of the Calaveras County Board of Supervisors’ Resolution 75-489.

Williamson Act (WA) and Ag Preserve (AP) are not the same thing. A property owner wanting to enter into a Williamson Act contract must have their property zoning changed into an Ag Preserve (rezoned). Each Ag Preserve requires a minimum of 100 acres (be it one parcel or more to reach 100 acres: for example, two 50-acre parcels).

You can have lands in an Ag Preserve that are not in WA; however, you cannot have lands under WA contract that are not in an AP. Either way, the lands to be enrolled must be consistent with the Calaveras County General Plan.

Although there are several steps, the first step is filling out a Williamson Act contract application and submitting it with the processing fee to our department. The application can be found below:
 

• Williamson Act Application

Please call our office at (209) 754-6504 for further application processing information.

You can fill out the form below and either mail it to our office at 891 Mountain Ranch Road, San Andreas, CA 95249

-or-

You may hand deliver the below form to our office at 556 Mountain Ranch Road, San Andreas, CA 95249
 

• Annual Report Form