John Hilton is an agriculture statistician for the United States Department of Agriculture in Utah working to clarify data collected from the USDA land value survey.
“So we do agricultural statistics about the farm and ranch, livestock inventories, crop production, you know, anything that has to do with the farm or ranch,” Hilton said.
The Utah land value survey covers half of the mountain region, encompassing Utah, Arizona and Wyoming. The data collected will provide supplemental information that was not collected during the larger land value survey in June.
“We don't really get enough response to that survey, to set really good estimates for the land values," Hilton said. "And so in January and February, we conduct this smaller survey that just focuses on the land values. And that way, it allows us to set some good quality estimates.”
Hilton said the survey benefits landowners in the Mountain West by providing numerical information to help them make informed decisions for their businesses.
“We're gonna gain is information that can go to the producers themselves, to landlords, financial institutions, different organizations like that they will have accurate data to make informed business decisions about selling or renting their land, applying for business loans, any interaction with financial institutions,” Hilton said.
The survey will ask 320 agriculture producers to provide information about how much land they own, how much land they rent from other people, and how much land they rent to others. They are also asked about their amount of cropland and pasture acreage. Finally, they’ll be asked about the market value of each piece of land.
