Owners of land designated for agricultural use can qualify for enormous deductions in their property taxes, sometimes cutting more than 99 percent of a property's taxable value. The law is designed to encourage owners to continue to farm despite the allure of developing the property.

To qualify for the tax break, a parcel must include five acres of trees or 10 acres of crops. But developers are abusing the rules to reduce taxes on land they intend to sell or to build on.

For example, the owner of a 5-acre beachfront lot worth millions might plant trees on the lot, reducing property taxes from thousands to, in many cases, less than $100. Many large developers with multimillion-dollar tracts paid less property tax last year than the average homeowner, according to a study by The (Charleston) Post and Courier.

The law allows unconnected, undersized plots to be taxed under agricultural rates if they are designated under a "timber management system." That way, developers can buy up small, valuable tracts, lump them under a timber management system and reap the tax benefits.

Make no mistake: The tax break for farmers is essential to the state's agricultural well-being. Many farmers could not afford the property taxes on what they earn selling crops or timber without the exemption.

But, as critics note, abuse of this tax break by non-farmers simply means higher taxes for everyone else. Bob Scott, president of the Forestry Association, suggests that lawmakers increase the timber lot size to 10 acres to eliminate the loophole for smaller lots, a proposal that seems worth pursuing.

The abuse of this loophole also highlights the futility of a piecemeal approach to property tax reform. Lawmakers need to assess the entire tax structure and address inequities such as this one before rushing to make wholesale changes in how property is taxed.