Relating to the Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Program.
ModeratePlan for compliance
Low Cost
Effective:2025-05-24
Enforcing Agencies
Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Council • Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
01
Compliance Analysis
Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation
Implementation Timeline
Effective Date:May 24, 2025 (Immediate effect due to supermajority vote).
Compliance Deadline:Immediate. All pending and future grant applications must reflect the new statutory criteria.
Agency Rulemaking: The Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Council must update its scoring matrix to include timber productivity and fragmentation metrics. We anticipate a regulatory gray zone of 90-120 days where the law is active, but specific scoring weights for timber projects are not yet published in the Texas Register.
Immediate Action Plan
1.Audit Pending Applications: If you have an application in the pipeline, immediately contact TPWD staff to determine if you can supplement your narrative with "timber" and "fragmentation" data to improve your score.
2.Draft Resource Management Plans: Begin drafting RMPs for all prospective timberland projects immediately; do not wait for the grant cycle to open.
3.Update Easement Templates: Revise your standard Conservation Easement Deed to include the new statutory definitions of timber and forestry.
4.Monitor the Texas Register: Assign staff to watch for the Council's proposed scoring rules to determine how "large tracts" will be defined.
Operational Changes Required
Contracts
Easement Deeds: The "Purpose" clause in conservation easement deeds must be redrafted to explicitly reference "timber use" and "forestry operations" where applicable, mirroring the new language in Section 84.002(1).
Term Selection: Applicants must make a strategic contractual decision between a perpetual term or a 30-year term. While both are legal, the Council is now statutorily required to weigh the term length in its scoring process; perpetual terms will likely score higher, but 30-year terms are now codified as a distinct option.
Hiring/Training
Silviculture Expertise: Land trusts and applicants must engage forestry consultants. The required "Resource Management Plan" (RMP) for timberlands will require technical expertise to draft credible silviculture standards that meet Council approval.
Grant Writers: Staff must be retrained to argue "threat of fragmentation" rather than just agricultural value.
Reporting & Record-Keeping
Resource Management Plan (RMP): A new, mandatory document. You cannot submit an application without an RMP agreed to by both the landowner and the easement holder, and subsequently approved by the Council.
Proof of Threat: You must curate an evidentiary file documenting development pressure (e.g., adjacent subdivision plats, zoning changes) to substantiate the "susceptibility to fragmentation" scoring factor.
Fees & Costs
Consulting Costs: Expect increased operational costs related to hiring forestry experts for RMP drafting.
No New State Fees: The bill does not impose new filing fees.
Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations
Definition of "Large Tracts": The statute prioritizes "large tracts" but fails to define a minimum acreage. This will be left to agency discretion. Applicants with mid-sized holdings (e.g., 500-1,000 acres) are currently at risk of being deprioritized until the Council clarifies the threshold.
Enforcement Standards: Section 2(6) allows the Council to adopt "best practices and enforcement standards." It is unclear if the Council will impose strict timber harvest quotas or limitations as a condition of funding. Watch the rulemaking process closely for restrictions on commercial logging activities within these easements.
Need Help Understanding Implementation?
Our government affairs experts can walk you through this bill's specific impact on your operations.
Information presented is for general knowledge only and is provided without warranty, express or implied. Consult qualified government affairs professionals and legal counsel before making compliance decisions.
Currently, the voluntary Texas Farm and Ranch Land Conservation Program allows farmers, ranchers, and property owners to protect their land through agricultural conservation easements purchased by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. A conservation easement is a voluntary, legally binding agreement that restricts the use or development of a parcel of land to protect its agricultural or timber production value against the threats of development and land fragmentation. The bill's author has informed the committee that numerous stakeholder organizations have expressed a strong desire to strengthen legislative intent through statute to ensure that working agricultural lands are the sole beneficiaries of the program. C.S.H.B. 2018 seeks to address this issue by establishing such intent and by clarifying that the Texas Farm and Ranch Land Conservation Program is intended solely for purchasing conservation easements on working agricultural or timber lands.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 2018 amends the Parks and Wildlife Code to authorize the Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Council to ensure that agricultural conservation easements purchased under the Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Program are not inconsistent with the maintenance of the land's agricultural or timber productivity. The bill specifies that an "agricultural conservation easement" includes a conservation easement in qualified land that is designed to maintain that productivity. The bill replaces the requirement for the council to give priority to applications under the program that protect agricultural lands that are susceptible to development with a requirement for the council to give priority instead to applications that protect and maintain the agricultural or timber productivity of lands that are susceptible to development. The bill includes the agricultural or timber productivity of land among the criteria that the council must consider when evaluating and scoring grant applications under the program.
EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2025.
COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 2018 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
Whereas the introduced authorized the council to ensure that agricultural conservation easements purchased under the program are not inconsistent with the maintenance of the land's agricultural use potential, the substitute authorizes the council to ensure that such easements are not inconsistent with the maintenance of the land's agricultural or timber productivity. Similarly, the introduced specified that an "agricultural conservation easement" includes a conservation easement in qualified land that is designed to maintain that land's agricultural use potential, while the substitute specifies that the easement is designed to maintain that land's agricultural or timber productivity.
Whereas the introduced replaced the requirement for the council to give priority to applications under the program that protect agricultural lands that are susceptible to development with a requirement for the council to give priority instead to applications that protect and maintain the agricultural use potential of lands that are susceptible to development, the substitute replaces that requirement with a requirement for the council to give priority to applications that protect and maintain the agricultural or timber productivity of lands that are susceptible to development. The substitute includes the timber productivity of land among the criteria that the council must consider when evaluating and scoring grant applications under the program, whereas the introduced did not.
Effective immediately, HB2018 legally elevates timber and forestry operations to the same eligibility status as traditional agriculture for state conservation easement funding. This legislation mandates that the Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Council prioritize the prevention of land fragmentation and the conservation of "large tracts," requiring land trusts and timberland owners to overhaul current grant applications and easement structures to align with these new statutory definitions. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: May 24, 2025 (Immediate effect due to supermajority vote).
Q
Who authored HB2018?
HB2018 was authored by Texas Representative Trent Ashby during the Regular Session.
Q
When was HB2018 signed into law?
HB2018 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on May 24, 2025.
Q
Which agencies enforce HB2018?
HB2018 is enforced by Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Council and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
Q
How urgent is compliance with HB2018?
The compliance urgency for HB2018 is rated as "moderate". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.
Q
What is the cost impact of HB2018?
The cost impact of HB2018 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.
Q
What topics does HB2018 address?
HB2018 addresses topics including agriculture, parks & wildlife, parks & wildlife--general, conservation easements and timber & timberland.
Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025
Need Strategic Guidance on This Bill?
Need help with Government Relations, Lobbying, or compliance? JD Key Consulting has the expertise you're looking for.
