YAKIMA, Wash. -- Two Eastern Washington legislators want to change state law to extend property tax breaks to more rural residents.

13th District Republican Reps. Bill Hinkle of Cle Elum and Judy Warnick of Moses Lake have drafted a bill that would make horse boarders and people who raise livestock, but don't breed them, eligible for a tax reduction reserved for commercial farmers.

Hinkle called it a "good tool for preserving ag lands legitimately."

Hinkle said the bill won't apply to people who simply own horses as pets.

The tax cut focuses on the state's open space program. Enacted in 1970, the program encourages property owners to leave land undeveloped. Commercial farming brings the highest break.

But strict interpretations of open space laws require property owners to breed animals to qualify for the highest break, leaving out horse boarders and people who raise piglets or goats on their land.

The issue arose in the fall when the state Department of Revenue noticed that county assessors had been granting the break inconsistently. Since December, the department has been using a temporary rule that extends the reduction to people raising livestock but not horse boarders, unless they graze commercially.

Hinkle said his bill should clarify things for the department, as well as support the horse industry.

There are 9,000 or so open space parcels in Yakima County, according to the county assessor's office, but not all eligible property owners apply for the tax break.

Yakima County is home to 5,616 horses, according to the 2002 U.S. Department of Agriculture census. But that number only includes horses on a farm, which Agriculture defines as a property that sells at least $1,000 of agricultural goods.

Warnick owns a horse boarding facility near Moses Lake, according to a news release from the state legislature offices in Olympia.

The bill will first be reviewed by the House Agriculture and Natural Resource Committee.

* Ross Courtney can be reached at 930-8798 or rcourtney@yakimaherald.com.