Was a sweet-potato warehouse on nonfarming land exempt from Louisiana property tax?

Plain-English summary

In 2005, the Louisiana Attorney General explained that a “farm structure” had to be located on land actually devoted to agriculture to qualify for the property-tax exemption discussed in the opinion. Morehouse Parish's assessor had asked about a sweet-potato storage warehouse on a three-acre tract that was not being cultivated or used to raise crops or animals. The AG's legal interpretation pointed away from treating a building on nonagricultural land as an exempt farm structure.

The AG did not grant or deny an exemption for that warehouse. It expressly said the actual tax status was a factual determination reserved to the assessor, the Louisiana Tax Commission, and ultimately the courts. The opinion defined agricultural land for this purpose by the cited statute's language on cultivation, crop production and harvest, and raising and managing livestock.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2005. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Was the sweet-potato warehouse exempt from property tax? A: The AG did not make that property-specific determination. It explained that a farm structure needed to be on agricultural land and left the exemption decision to the assessor and reviewing authorities.

Did storing farm products alone make a warehouse a farm structure? A: The opinion did not treat storage alone as enough. Its interpretation required the structure to stand on land devoted to agricultural and cultivation purposes.

What counted as agricultural land in this opinion? A: The AG used La. R.S 47:1707's description: land used for cultivation, production and harvest of crops, or raising and management of livestock.

Who decided whether a particular property actually qualified? A: The opinion said the assessor, the Louisiana Tax Commission, and ultimately the courts had that factual authority; the AG could explain the applicable legal rule.

Background and statutory framework

Assessor Michael Wooden described a warehouse used to store sweet potatoes on land not otherwise used for crop or animal production. The AG cited La. R.S 47:1707, which included “farm structures” within agricultural implements used exclusively for agricultural purposes, but did not define that term. The opinion repeated an earlier AG definition: a farm structure was a construction “located on land devoted to agricultural and cultivation purposes.” It also warned that tax exemptions were strictly construed and stated that the agency could not itself award an exemption.

The original PDF inconsistently labels the constitutional subsection in its heading and quoted excerpt. This page reports the opinion's farm-structure reasoning without resolving that printed discrepancy.

Citations

• La. R.S 47:1707 (farm-structure provision discussed in the opinion).
• Louisiana Constitution, Article VII, Section 21 (agricultural exemption provision discussed, with inconsistent subsection label in the source).

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/05-0017

Original opinion text

April 20, 2005
OPINION NUMBER 05-0017

2-1 AGRICULTURE: Warehouses
4 ASSESSORS
129 TAXATION – Levy & Assessment (ad valorem taxes) La. R.S 47:1707
Mr. Michael Wooden, CLA
Art. VII, Sec. 21(C)(11) of La. Constitution
Assessor, Morehouse Parish
A “farm structure” must be located on agricultural land, i.e. land
P.O. Box 1177
used for the cultivation, production and harvest of crops and in
Bastrop, LA 71221-1177
the raising and management of live stock, to qualify for
exemption from ad valorem taxation.

Dear Mr. Wooden:

You have asked the opinion of this office regarding the ad valorem tax status of a warehouse used for storing sweet potatoes. You indicated that the warehouse is located on a three-acre tract of land that is not being cultivated or used for the production of crops or animals. Specifically you ask whether this warehouse is a farm structure that would be exempt from ad valorem taxes.

Initially, it should be noted that the authority to determine whether a particular taxpayer may be exempt from the payment of ad valorem taxes is a factual determination exclusively reserved by the Louisiana Constitution and statutory law to the assessor, the La. Tax Commission, and ultimately, the courts.1 While the Attorney General does not have the authority to grant tax exemptions, we would like to assist you with the applicable law that should be used in making your determinations.

The jurisprudence of this State has consistently held that constitutional and statutory grants of exemptions from taxation must be strictly construed in favor of the taxing body and against the taxpayer desiring the exemption. Any possible doubt is fatal. Thus, an exemption, being an exceptional privilege, must be clearly, unequivocally and affirmatively established.2

La. Constitution Art. VII, Sec. 21(C)(11) provides, in pertinent part, as follows:

§ 21. In addition to the homestead exemption provided for in Section 20 of this Article, the following property and no other shall be exempt from ad valorem taxation:

1
Attorney General Opinion Nos. 00-54, 96-438, 94-603, 94-602, 93-392, 92-660, 89-500 and 76-114.
2
st
Zapata Haney Corp. v. Larpenter, 583 So.2d 867 (La. App. 1 Cir. 1991) writ denied.

Page 2

Honorable Michael Wooden
OPINION NUMBER 05-0017
Page -2-

                                           *      *       *

(B)(11) agricultural products while owned by the producer, agricultural machinery and other implements used exclusively for agricultural purposes, animals on the farm, and property belonging to an agricultural fair association; (Emphasis added.)

La. R.S 47:1707 clarifies the meaning of the term “agricultural machinery and other implements used exclusively for agricultural purposes” contained in the above exemption. It expressly provides that “farm structures” are included within the meaning of the term and exemption afforded by Section 21(C)(11), but does not define farm structures. This office has previously defined a farm structure as “any building, house, barn, fence and any other construction located on land devoted to agricultural and cultivation purposes.”3 That opinion was cited and reaffirmed more recently, when we opined that buildings on lands that are not being used for agricultural purposes (i.e. the cultivation of the land or production of crops and animals) do not constitute farm structures for tax-exempt purposes.”4

You also ask what constitutes agricultural land. Since La. R.S. 47:1707 refers to agricultural purposes as the “cultivation, production and harvest of crops and in the raising and management of live stock”, it is our opinion that agricultural lands would be lands being used for these purposes.

We trust the above discussion will assist you in your determination as to the tax-exempt status of the subject property.

With kindest regards,

Yours very truly,

CHARLES C. FOTI, JR.
ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY: _______ DENISE B. FITZGERALD
Assistant Attorney General

CCF, JR:DBF:jv

3
Atty. Gen. Op. No. 81-179 (Issued to you and attached) 4
Atty. Gen. Op. No. 01-144

Page 3

Honorable Michael Wooden
OPINION NUMBER 05-0017
Page -3-

#05-0017
2-1 AGRICULTURE: Warehouses
4 ASSESSORS
129 TAXATION – Levy & Assessment (ad valorem taxes)
La. R.S 47:1707
Art. VII, Sec. 21(C)(11) of La. Constitution

A “farm structure” must be located on agricultural land, i.e. land used for the cultivation, production and harvest of crops and in the raising and management of live stock, to qualify for exemption from ad valorem taxation.

Date Received:

Date Released: April 20, 2005

Denise B. Fitzgerald
Assistant Attorney General