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Ohio Lawmakers Approve New Bill To Promote Agritourism

Statehouse News Bureau
Northern Ohio farm land

A bill that’s been passed by the Ohio Legislature is designed to help the state’s agritourism industry.

The Ohio Farm Bureau Federation’s Brandon Kern says Ohio is full of agritourism opportunities.

“Your fall fest, your corn mazes, your you-pick operations, anything that’s bringing in the public on to the farm to experience agriculture in a direct way.”

Kern says more than $2 million was spent on agritourism in 2012. The bill that lawmakers have passed would give farmers some legal immunity in cases of people getting hurt while on the farms, and it would insure farmers could retain their current status as agriculture for tax purposes. The bill has been sent to Gov. John Kasich.

Contact Jo Ingles at jingles@statehousenews.org.