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Lebanon County Commissioners certified the county’s 2025 financial contribution to the farmland preservation program on Thursday, Jan. 16.
Commissioners unanimously approved to provide $368,071 towards the program, which allows conservation district officials to purchase agricultural conservation easements across Lebanon County in perpetuity. Commissioners must certify its contribution so that Lebanon County can secure the commonwealth’s farmland preservation matching grant for the year.
Craig Zemitis, an ag preservation specialist with the Lebanon County Conservation District, said the county’s allocation of 2025 funds is $278,497, with another $89,574 added from interest collected from 2024 Clean and Green rollback tax penalties. Landowners who remove their properties from the farmland preservation program must pay a penalty.
Zemitis said municipal donations were about the same as previous years.
Information provided to LebTown noted that municipal donations totaled $97,650 while individual donations were about $2,409. Act 13 funds were $42,500, another $85,000 is in the program’s general fund, and interest earned in 2024 was nearly $51,000.
“Nothing has changed too much, the township donations are right around where they were before,” said Zemitis. “Individual donations are less this year because of the Esther Martin donation of last year, a very large donation, but that was to be expected.”
Zemitis noted that there are about 15 properties on the county’s farmland preservation program waiting list with three others also interested in conserving their farms.
“We have a lot of interest this year,” he said. “We have about 15 on the waiting list now but I’ve had a few people contact me who are interested.”
Lebanon County administrator Jamie Wolgemuth asked Zemitis if he knew what the state’s matching grant would be for 2025.
“I took the average and it is around 1.3,” Zemitis responded, which means the state will provide $1.30 for every $1 put into the program by the county. That translates into $846,563 to purchase agricultural easements in 2025. Lebanon County purchases agricultural conservation easements at $2,500 per acre.
Zemitis told LebTown when asked that the Martin estate funds had been disbursed in 2024.
“So that cut our (waiting) list down a lot because we were close to 30,” he said. “So now we’re down to around 15, but more people are taking interest in the program, so it is not going to cut down the list completely. It seems like we are getting a lot more interest this year, so maybe as the list gets smaller people are more interested in applying since they have a better chance of getting preserved.”
In an unrelated matter, commissioners entered into two lease agreements for those agricultural spaces with local producers for calendar year 2025. The leases are effective Jan. 1 through Dec. 31.
The county agreed to lease 12.3 acres to Kenneth Reist along Route 422 near the Lebanon County Career and Technology Center in the amount of $1,200. The other lease is with Loren Horning for $150 for one acre along state Route 934 and Church Road in South Annville Township, which is adjacent to Horning’s property.
In other business, commissioners voted to:
- Sign an Infinium services master consulting services contract agreement and to upgrade its Infinium contract with Technology Consulting Inc. to update tax rolls, 1099s and other tax documents. The contracted rate is $175 per hour and is on an as-needed basis.
- Reappoint Ed Anspach, Lowell Brogan, and Franklin Shearer to the Lebanon Transit Advisory Board for three-year terms that run through Jan. 31, 2028.
- Provide a hotel tax grant totaling $5,000 to the Community Health Council of Lebanon County for the Tour de Lebanon on June 14.
- Approve by a 2-1 vote a hotel tax grant totaling $5,000 for the Pennsylvania Gourd Society’s Gourd Art Show and Festival from June 12-14 at the Lebanon Valley Expo Center and Fairgrounds. Commissioner Jo Ellen Litz made a motion to approve the grant at $3,800, citing funding the county already provides for the expo center as the basis for her motion at an amount lower than what was requested. Litz voted no after another motion was made to fund the event at the requested amount.
- Pay Josie Ames, chairman of the Lebanon County Committee of America250, for expenses incurred for the county’s America250 holiday parade float totaling $65.88, and Myerstown-based FORCEpkg for work performed to create the county’s America250 website and promotional materials totaling $2,029.89.
- Enter into an agreement with Lillian Morales to provide translation subcontractor services to Lebanon County Community Action Partnership at a rate of $20 and no more than 35 hours per week via a Community Service Block Grant, retroactive to Jan 1 through Dec. 31, 2024.
- Sign an agreement for provision of medical assistance transportation services for Lebanon County Community Action Partnership with Middletown-based Kixilan Transport and Darina B. Vargas DeMartinez, effective July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025.
- Grant three provider contract amendments for fiscal year 2024-25 totaling $21,921 for the Lebanon County Mental Health/Intellectual Disabilities/Early Intervention (MH/ID/EI) Department. The contracts are for peer support services with WellSpan Philhaven, special instruction with Happy Hearts LLC, and nutrition support evaluation with Step by Step Pediatric Therapy Inc. They are covered through existing funding, meaning those costs will be covered at no additional cost to taxpayers.
- Issue a signatory authorization letter for Susan Douglas, director of fiscal operations for Lebanon County MH/ID/EI department, for pre-paid burial accounts to continue the agency’s work with Wells Fargo, the agency’s financial institution.
- Recognize Grace Hirschbock with a proclamation honoring her 100th birthday.
- Approve the minutes of their Jan. 2 meeting, the treasurer’s report and various personnel transactions.
Following the meeting, commissioners entered into an executive session to discuss personnel matters.
Lebanon County Commissioners meet the first and third Thursday of each month at 9:30 a.m. in room 207 of the county municipal building at 400 S. 8th St., Lebanon.
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