Act 4884
San Luis Province
Ministry of Industry and Production
Secretary of Farming Production, Ecology and Irrigation

Provincial Direction of Ecology and Forestry

Chapter I

Section 1° the development of forestry, reforestry and management of native or/and implanted forest set forth by the regulation of the present act shall be declared of provincial interest.

Section 2° For the purposes of development the subjects to be considered are:

1. Forestry and reforestry with natives or exotic species with production and protection aims.
2. Rational management of the implanted forest.
3. Conservation, protection, improvement and development of the native forest.
4. Implantation or conservation of forest for the protection of drainage areas, margins of water courses, eroding or erosionable land and those areas that need preservation according to administrative authorities.

Section 3° Forestry development regime comprises:

1. Tax benefits
2. Fiscal credit
3. Forestry aid

Chapter II

Beneficiaries

Section 4° The beneficiaries regime of the act herein are those individuals or corporations that make effective investments in native forest and plantations, by themselves or third parties, in private or Foreign according to authorized technical forestry plan.

Section 5° Beneficiaries shall submit the corresponding plans with the signature of an authorized professional and shall be subject to the submitting and approval regulations set forth by the administrative authority.

Section 6° for the purposes of the development of the act herein, the lands with forest aptitudes shall be:

1. Those that due to weather and soil conditions must not be plowed permanently, those that are sheltered from vegetation, excluding those that without suffering degradation can be used for agriculture, fruitculture or intensive cattle and in pAcerls located over the following sea level elevations:

   Capital city Department, General Pedernera and San Martín: 1000 meters

   Chacabuco Department: 1200 meters

   Junín, Ayacucho and Belgrano Department: 1300 meters

2. Those margins of watercourses that constitute the Rio Quinto drainage area up to Paso de las Carretas dam.
3. Those located in any land of the province with permanent irrigation
4. Those native forest of Gobernador Vicente Dupuy, Ayacucho and Belgrano Departments.

Benefits

Section 7° The beneficiaries herein shall enjoy the benefits hereunder:

1. Real state tax exemption on native forest when fire prevention practices were made, as from the publishing of the said act.
2. Crédito fiscal para la implantación de bosques de producción y protección.
3. Fiscal credit for the implantation of production and protection forest.
4. Forestry help

Fiscal credit for the conservation, improvement and management of native forest.

Real state tax

Section 8° Native forest proprietors that carry out fire prevention practices, shall be entitled to a fiscal credit equivalent to a 50% of the investment chargeable to real state tax prior approval and certification of the administrative authority and pursuant to the regulations thereafter.

Fiscal Credit

Section 9° Fiscal credit for production and/or protection forest, named Bono Verde(Green Bond) equals from thirty percent (30 %) to eighty percent (80%)of the invested and adjusted value, as from the third year of a succeeded forest plantation. These Bonos Verdes shall be given by the administrative authority prior investment approval and certification. The percentage of fiscal credit of each plantation shall be provided in the regulations of said Act, according to the zone, variation, density, soil and aims of the forest.

These Bonos Verdes shall be given by the administrative authority prior investment approval and certification. The percentage of fiscal credit of each plantation shall be provided in the regulations of said Act, according to the zone, variation, density, soil and aims of the forest.

The following cost factors for investment calculation shall be considered:

1. Land systematization and preparation
2. Seeds and "plantines" (small plants) seedlings and spikes
3. General and management cost

Neither land, rent nor equivalent value nor financing costs shall be counted. The cost shall be fixed prior to 30 June of each year based on economic/technical calculation of administrative authority, and the Bonos Verdes shall be granted to the beneficiaries as from the next thirty (30) days.

Section 10° Foresters of protection and/or production forest once reach three or more years shall receive as many Bonos Verdes as succeeded forest hectares, without prejudice of fiscal credit corresponding to a more than one hectare forest can become unified in one Bono Verde. In case the plantation has been unsuccessful after three years, due to fortuitous or majeure causes derived from weather conditions or fires duly certified by the administrative authority, final certification for fiscal credit shall be postponed up to the forest shall fulfill the requirements herein.

Section 11° The Bonos Verdes shall be transferable by endorsement and shall be used at hundred percent (100%) par value, by beneficiaries or by endorsees for the tax liabilities cancellation derived from any tax whose application, collection and control shall be in charge of the Dirección Provincial de Rentas ( Provincial Revenues Bureau) (automotive tax is not included).

Section 12° The Banco de la Provincia de San Luis shall acquire the Bonos Verdes at its 80% par value and shall deduce the net value in the account the Executive Power shall indicate for this purpose, with no more than 1% commission fee. In case of any demand, the Bank can resale the Bonos Verdes acquired at a minor par value to people interested in cancel their tax liabilities.

Section 13° the Bonos Verdes mature definitely 31 December of the next year of the bond issue.

Section 14° Forestry help shall be carried out by INPROFOP and shall be of:

1. Production and sale of seeds and "plantines" (small plants) seedlings and spikes.
2. Technical forestry advisory
3. Forest plantation
4. Technical forestry management.
5. Infrastructure for forestry activity
6. Forestry technology divulgation
7. Forestry investigation
8. Marketing

Section 15° The Executive Power shall negotiate with the Banco de la Provincia de San Luis special loans for foresters that have authorized plans, shall carry out forest, reforest activities, arranging or improvement of the plantation.

Chapter III

Forestry plans

Section 16° Administrative authority within ninety days (90) as from the passing of the Act herein, shall propose the Executive Power The Provincial Forestry Plan for 1991-1994 period that shall be updated with the past years amendments annually prior to June 30.

Said document shall have the annual aims to be achieved in hectares for plantation, zone and species. It also shall state the grounds of establishing the budget quota as from the third year of the passing of said Act.

Section 17° Executive power shall carry out and publish a document with the Provincial Forestry Development Plan as follows:

1. Budgetary provisions to promote forestry activity during the first three years, by means a global quota for Bonos Verdes issue as from the third year when the plan shall be included in the Budget Act.
2. Promotion levels to grant the forestry activities as per hectare, zone, species having into account the recognition between thirty percent (30%) and eighty percent (80%) of the costs provided in section 9 of the act herein.

Section 18° when applications for authorized plans exceed the annual quota specified by the executive power, the administrative authority shall prorate with priority of lower amount applications.

When applications for authorized plans shall be lower than the annual quota, Executive Power can reduce it or to charge to the fiscal credit to the following accounting years.

Section 19° to stay within the fiscal year, the beneficiary must submit the pertinent application with the following data:

1. PAcerl location
2. PAcerl dimension
3. Ecological Characteristic
4. Distance from timber consumer locations
5. Species too be forested
6. Density per hectare
7. Plantation initiation date

The administrative authority must decide regarding the application approval, objection or dismissing within the term of sixty days (60) as from the plan presentation date.

Chapter IV

Common regulations

Section 20° the acceptance of Forestry development regime is optional and alternative but not accumulative regarding the benefits of the act herein with other national or provincial forestry plans of development or incentive.

Section 21° the Bonos Verdes Regime matures at ten years (10) as from the passing of the present act and a forested area can be only benefited once, the reforestation financing of the same-forested area after the final cutting is forbidden.

Section 22° The Administrative authority can approve multiannual forestry plans to be developed in a period of two (2) to five (five) consecutive years. In such cases, the achieved plantations shall be certified as from the third year and so on.

Section 23° for the purposes of the present act the administrative authority shall be Direction of ecology and Forestry.

Section 24° the Executive Power shall regulate the present act within ninety (90) days as from the publishing in the Official Bulletin.

Section 25° the fees set forth in the act herein due to certifications and inspections shall be chargeable to the Provincial Fund of Forestry (Section 3° Act 4848).

Section 26° the present act shall be named Provincial Forestry Development Act.

Section 27° Any other disposition contrary to the present act shall be revoke.

Section 28° to be recorded and communicate to the Executive Power and filed.

Sessions of the Legislature of San Luis Province on the twenty-three days of October of one thousand nine hundred ninety.