Wetlands Property Tax Exemption

Wetlands are areas where water covers soil all or part of the time.  “Wetlands” means all types of 3, 4, and 5 wetlands, which are as follows:

• Type III Wetlands: These provide longer water duration for broods and other creatures, typically drying up by early summer.
• Type IV Wetlands: These remain wet throughout the season, providing overwinter water for insects, fish, and amphibians.
• Type V Wetlands: These are larger open waters that remain ice-free later in fall, serving as resting stops for migrating waterfowl.
• Landowner must agree to not drain, fill, pump, or concentrate water in a smaller and deeper excavation in the wetland basin or alter the physical nature of the wetland in any manner that reduces the wetland's ability to function as a natural system during the year for which the exemption is claimed.

• If the agreement is broken, the exemption is lost for that year.
• If the wetlands are later drained or changed so they no longer qualify, the landowner must pay back the taxes that would have been owed for the past 10 years, minus what was actually paid.

Must file by June 30 each year with the director of tax equalization an application for owners of wetlands.  The county director will confirm to the county auditor that the landowner has filed the agreement.  The amount of tax savings will be shown on the landowner’s property tax statement. 

Once approved, exemption will be applied to the taxpayer’s property tax statement.

N.D.C.C. § 57-02-08.4