Page 11 - Georgia Forestry - Issue 3 - Summer 2024

popular attractions — the iconic Ponce City Market (PCM) owned by Jamestown. GFF’s Torus Arch, an interactive mass timber exhibit in the PCM courtyard, provides a touchpoint for BeltLine shoppers to learn about and interact with the beauty and versatility of mass timber. GFF has also fully leveraged the opportunity to educate decision- makers about the power of the forestry supply chain through the construction of Georgia’s first locally grown mass timber building — 619 Ponce. The initiative website (www.seedlingstosolutions. org) features a documentary series on the mass timber supply chain used in 619 Ponce. In addition, with the support of Jamestown’s staff, GFF has conducted mass timber tours with hundreds of
forestry, business and political leaders. This year, GFF is also advancing mass timber construction through the Georgia Mass Timber Accelerator. The Accelerator will support the growth of sustainable development in Georgia by increasing utilization and awareness of mass timber. Architecture, engineering and development teams who submit applications for pending mass timber construction projects will be evaluated by a panel of nationally renowned wood design, engineering and construction experts. Up to six selected teams will be awarded a $25,000 grant and a suite of expert technical assistance to support the advancement of the project, including design and planning, carbon assessment
and cost-benefit analysis.
Paving the Way for Efficiency and Cost Reduction
The challenges facing Georgia’s forestry operations have been significant, with inflation driving up costs for equipment, maintenance and labor. Yet GFA’s advo- cacy efforts have made strides in reduc- ing these burdens and protecting forestry investments in dirt (forestland) and steel (equipment and manufacturing assets).
Since the early 1990s, GFA has cham- pioned the passage of several key pieces of legislation that have sought to improve the tax environment for forest landown- ers. Legislation includes the Qualified Timberland Property (QTP) program (Amendment 3 / 2018), Forest Land Protection Act (Amendment 1 / 2008), Conservation Use Valuation Assess- ment (1991) and several bills that have protected or advanced tax programs for forest landowners. GFA’s tax legislation has delivered meaningful conservation results impacting millions of acres and
delivering between $8-9 per acre per year in savings for forest landowners.
For the harvesting and logistics sector, House Bill 897 in 2020 standardized tim- ber harvest ordinances and streamlined the notification process, saving loggers time and resources. And, most impor- tantly, a statewide referendum in 2022 eliminated ad valorem taxes on forestry equipment, benefiting over 1,200 small businesses. The modest weight increase for log trucks in House Bill 189, passed in 2023, further eased supply chain pressures.
GFA will be back in Atlanta to extend the increased weight provisions for forest products in the 2025 Legislative Session.
Looking ahead, Senate Resolution 786, passed in 2024, promises to drive innovation in forest products, exploring high-demand items like sustainable avia- tion fuel and bioplastics. Long-term, GFA’s legislative and outreach strategy will aim to continue advancing markets for value- added forest products that will support the long-term investments made in Georgia’s existing forest products supply chain.
YOUR INVESTMENT AT WORK
(Just the High Points)
2024
Established Senate
Advancing Forest Innovation Study Committee (SR 786)
Removed Public
Trust Doctrine From Water Law (HB 1172)
2023
Increased Allowable
Truck Weights to 88,000 lbs. GVW (HB 189)
Seedlings to Solutions Initiative Launched
2022
Eliminated Ad Valorem
Tax on Forestry Equipment (Amendment B)
Increased Fines
for Poaching (HB 343)
Received U.S.
Forestry Service Wood Innovations Grant
Georgia Tech Design Studio
Regional Forestry Groups Re-Established
2021
Expanded Carbon
Registry to Include Mass Timber (HB 355)
Improved Qualified
Timberland Property Rules (HB 282)
Fixed Outdated Law
on Timberland Transactions (HB 90)
2020
Hosted American Forestry Conference
Mass Timber Code Adoption (HB 777)
Ensured Uniformity of
Timber Harvesting Ordinances (HB 897)
Combating Palmetto Berry Theft (HB 966)
2019
Preserved Tax
Appeal Rights for Landowners (HB 183)
GPB “Make That
Paper” Workforce Game Launched
Mass Timber
Tour with Elected Officials in PNW
2018
Qualified Timberland Property (Amendment 3)
GPB Georgia
Forests II Digitial Curriculum Launched
2017
Ended Wood Ban Ordinances (HB 876)
Southeast Mass
Timber Symposium with Georgia Tech
Georgia Forests I
Digital Curriculum Launched
2016-17
Eminent Domain Study Committee Formed
2015
Georgia-Grown
Wood in Green Building Construction
2014
Enhanced Timber Security (HB 790)
2011
Conducted Ecosystem
Services Study with UGA Warnell
2008
Passage of the
Forestland Protection Act (FLPA)
2003
Georgia Forestry
Education Center Built in Forsyth, GA
1991
Passed Conservation
Use Valuation Assessment (CUVA)
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= GEORGIA FORESTRY FOUNDATION