See Chapter Eight, Tax Matters, for a more detailed discussion of tax implications associated with donations of conservation easements. In this instance, the easement is generally signed during the lifetime of the donor but does not come into effect until his or her death. Upon the donor's death, provided that the conservation values of the land have not been compromised in the interim, the organization will execute the easement as instructed in the donor's will. In acknowledgement of this responsibility and the associated costs, many landowners choose to make a contribution to the organization that is over and above the donation of the easement. By making this contribution, a landowner is said to endow the easement.
Some organizations require that their easements be endowed.
Others encourage but do not require endowments. The amount of an endowment generally takes into consideration such factors as size of the property and any particular challenges it presents to effective monitoring. Subject to tax law, a landowner may claim an endowment in regard to an easement as a fully deductible charitable contribution. Landowner Profile A mile long and just under a quarter-mile wide, the rabbit's foot shaped peninsula known as Pine Point juts out into the currents of the Mississippi River in Stearns County, Minnesota. The Point has been in the news on and off since the 1930s, when a feature story about Pine Point conservation efforts could be found sharing the pages of the local newspaper with a story about the latest exploits of mobster Al Capone.