A conservation easement must be held by a qualified organization.
According to Section 170(h) of the Internal Revenue Code, a “qualified organization” is either:
- A governmental entity; or
- A 501(c)(3) organization that, pursuant to the Treasury Regulations, has:
- a commitment to protect the conservation purposes of a donation; and
- the resources to enforce the restrictions of the donation.
The Internal Revenue Service considers an organization operated primarily for conservation purposes to have the necessary commitment.
Sounds like your local land trust, doesn’t it?
