Illustrated Edwards Plateau limestone creek, Ashe juniper and Golden-cheeked warbler.

Edwards Plateau Ecoregion

Llano County Wildlife Exemption

How to get - and keep - a 1-d-1 wildlife management valuation on Llano County land: deadlines, the appraisal district, and the practices that fit this part of Texas.

Ecoregion
Edwards Plateau
County seat & CAD
Llano, Texas
Application window
January 1 – April 30
Core requirement
Form 50‑129 + PWD‑885 · 3 of 7 qualifying practices annually

The wildlife exemption in Llano County

Llano CAD comes back to you every year. The district’s 2025–2026 reappraisal plan says it sends annual update forms to properties already carrying wildlife-management valuation, then receives and reviews those updates alongside new wildlife applications, inspects the new applications, and continues field inspection of agricultural and wildlife land. Expect that form to arrive, and keep a running record as you go, because a year of work is hard to reconstruct from memory.

On acreage, Llano County sits in the Eastern Edwards Plateau wildlife appraisal region. That region’s reduced-tract band runs roughly 14.3–20 acres for a standard tract and 11.1–12.5 acres for land in a wildlife management property association or a qualifying listed-species category, and it bears only on a tract whose acreage was cut since January 1 of the preceding tax year. If the tract is the same size or larger, that acreage test does not apply, though every other qualification requirement still does. No current public LCAD material sets out where inside the band the district lands, so that figure has to come from the district.

Llano sits on the Llano Uplift, so a good deal of the county is granite country: coarse, shallow soils that drain fast under live oak and post oak. The Llano River and its tributaries cut through that, leaving deeper bottomland ground along them. TPWD describes the Mason–Gillespie–Llano convergence as country that can support roughly one deer per 2–3 acres in places, so browse condition here is worth tracking as closely as the deer count.

On the ground in Llano County

The Llano River cuts through a county where granite of the Llano Uplift, sandy soils, live oak and post oak create a different Hill Country texture from the limestone farther south. That matters for wildlife management. Food plots may work in deeper bottoms and fail on shallow granite ground; native forage, water, brush pattern and census can be more reliable tools. The Llano County plan should use the property’s geology and drainage to decide where habitat work will actually hold.

Llano County lies in the Edwards Plateau and is assigned to TPWD's Edwards Plateau (Eastern) wildlife-use appraisal region - the legal map that sets the reduced-tract acreage rule below.

Is there an acreage minimum in Llano County?

Did the tract get smaller since January 1 of last year?

No ➔

There is no wildlife acreage test in Llano County at all. Whatever the size, file Comptroller Form 50‑129 with a PWD‑885 plan. A 7-acre tract that already carried 1‑d‑1 (ag exempt) and was never split can convert with no penalties.

Yes ➔

The Llano County appraisal district has not published its exact figure. However, the legal minimum land requirement for this county in the Edwards Plateau (Eastern) region is between 14.3–20 acres (93–95%). If your acreage is inside of this range, we recommend to file the plan either way; the county will apply whatever they adopted.

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See how Llano County compares: minimum acreage for all 254 Texas counties →

Llano CAD sends out annual update forms

LCAD’s 2025–2026 reappraisal plan says the district sends annual update forms to existing wildlife-management properties, receives and reviews wildlife applications and annual wildlife updates, inspects new wildlife applications, and continues field inspection of agricultural and wildlife properties.

So the update is part of the normal year here. Keep a PWD‑888-ready record as you go - dates, locations, photographs, receipts or logs, and results - and filling in the district’s form becomes a matter of copying out what you already wrote down.

How it works here

Llano County follows the statewide 1-d-1 framework (Texas Tax Code §23.51(7)); the local variables are your appraisal district's filing habits and the Edwards Plateau intensity standards:

  • Start from an existing ag or timber valuation. Wildlife management is a conversion of qualified open-space land - check eligibility if your status is unclear.
  • File a wildlife management plan (TPWD form PWD‑885) with the Llano County appraisal district, attached to Comptroller Form 50‑129, between January 1 and April 30. What goes in the plan →
  • Perform at least 3 of the 7 practices each year at Edwards Plateau intensity levels - see the local examples below.
  • Document everything - dates, photos, quantities. When the chief appraiser requests an annual report (PWD‑888), you'll answer with records, not recollections.
  • No minimum acreage applies unless your tract got smaller since January 1 of last year. If it did, Llano County's figure is covered above - the district picks one number for the whole county, and the plan is still the application either way.

The 7 practices in Llano County

These are the kinds of activities appraisal districts in the Edwards Plateau recognize as real management - your plan picks at least three. The Edwards Plateau region guide covers the species, habitat problems and intensity standards behind them.

Choose any 3 of the 7 qualifying practices. The highlighted practices are commonly recommended in this county, but the right combination depends on the property and management goals.

Commonly Recommended in Llano CountyCommonly Recommended

Habitat control

Split the plan by the ground you have: granite upland, deeper bottomland, oak woodland and old field each respond differently to the same treatment. Selective brush work and native grass and forb recovery should follow soil depth and how hard the browse is being hit.

Commonly Recommended in Llano CountyCommonly Recommended

Census counts

Camera grids, browse transects, deer counts, and bird or turkey surveys where those birds use the property all work here. Run them the same way in the same places year after year, so the annual update shows how the property is trending rather than what you happened to see that week.

Commonly Recommended in Llano CountyCommonly Recommended

Supplemental water

Protect the riparian ground along the Llano River and its tributaries, and make stock water safe for wildlife to reach and climb out of. New water earns its place on dry uplands where it opens country that is going unused; a new trough a short walk from one that already serves is harder to defend.

Erosion control

Decomposed granite and other coarse soils move fast once cover is off them. Treat active gullies, ranch-road runoff, river and tributary approaches, and bare slopes, and map and photograph each project so the work can still be seen a year later.

Predator control

Feral-hog control holds up well where rooting and habitat damage along the river and creek bottoms is documented. Write down the species and the reason for the work rather than logging predator control on its own.

Providing shelter

Keep oak mottes, rocky and woody escape cover, brush piles, and the riparian structure along the river and creeks. Where selective clearing leaves more brush, stack it into piles that give real escape and nesting cover.

Supplemental food

Native browse and forb recovery tends to be the more durable objective on this ground. A planted food plot needs real soil depth behind it, so on shallow granite outcrop country it is usually the wrong practice to lean on.

Filing & the appraisal district

DateWhat happens in Llano County
January 1Valuation date - land is judged on its use and qualification as of this day.
Jan 1 – Apr 30File Form 50‑129 with your PWD‑885 plan at the Llano County appraisal district (Llano).
After Apr 30Late applications accepted until the appraisal roll certifies, with a 10% penalty on that year's savings.
ReportingLCAD sends annual update forms to existing wildlife properties and reviews them. Keep dated logs and photographs as you go.

Llano Central Appraisal District is in Llano, and its number is 325-247-3065. Confirm details before filing; districts adjust procedures year to year.

Last locally verified August 30, 2026

The cost of letting it slip

Losing qualification means market-value taxes going forward - and if the land's use changes to non-agricultural, rollback taxes: the previous three years of tax savings, recaptured in one bill. On typical Llano County acreage that's easily five figures. How rollback works →

Llano County questions

Llano County wildlife exemption FAQ

The questions Llano County landowners ask most - answered against this county’s appraisal district and the Edwards Plateau standards its plans are judged by.

How many acres do you need for a wildlife exemption in Llano County?
For most tracts, there is no minimum at all. Llano County applies no acreage test to wildlife management use unless your tract was reduced in size since January 1 of the preceding year. If it was, the Llano County appraisal district applies one figure it has adopted from the band its TPWD wildlife appraisal region carries - Llano County sits in the Edwards Plateau (Eastern) region, whose legal minimum land requirement for this county runs 14.3–20 acres (93–95%). If your acreage is inside of this range, we recommend to file the application either way; the county will apply whatever they adopted.
What is the wildlife exemption filing deadline in Llano County?
April 30. The window opens January 1 and closes April 30 - file Comptroller Form 50‑129 with a TPWD PWD‑885 wildlife management plan attached at the Llano County appraisal district in Llano. Miss it and the district still accepts a late application until the appraisal roll certifies (typically mid-July), but with a 10% penalty on that year’s tax savings. One trap catches new owners every year: buying land that already holds the valuation does not carry it over to you - you have to file your own application.
Do I need an existing ag exemption to get a wildlife exemption in Llano County?
Yes. Wildlife management is a qualifying use within the 1-d-1 open-space valuation, not a separate exemption - so the land has to already carry an agricultural or timber productivity valuation on the day you convert. If it does, converting changes the qualifying activity and nothing else: the productivity value carries over from your previous ag category, so your tax bill does not move. If the land lost its valuation, you would requalify the ordinary way first - agricultural use for 5 of the preceding 7 years - and then convert. The conversion playbook →
Which wildlife management practices qualify in Llano County?
Any three of the seven named in Texas Tax Code §23.51(7): habitat control, erosion control, predator control, supplemental water, supplemental food, providing shelter, and census counts. The list is statewide, but the standard you are judged against is regional - Llano County is Edwards Plateau country, so the Llano County appraisal district expects work sized to Edwards Plateau intensity levels and aimed at the problems that actually limit wildlife here: juniper (cedar) encroachment, overbrowsing by high deer densities, and declining spring flows. Habitat control, supplemental water, and census counts are the most common opening three. See what each one looks like here →
What species should a Llano County wildlife management plan target?
Whatever you name, it has to be indigenous - Texas Tax Code §23.51(7) qualifies land used to sustain a breeding, migrating, or wintering population of native wild animals, and that is the species test that actually decides qualification. In the Edwards Plateau, plans are usually built around white-tailed deer, Rio Grande turkey, bobwhite quail, black-capped vireo, golden-cheeked warbler, and a wide range of native songbirds and pollinators. The Edwards Plateau supports some of the densest white-tailed deer populations in North America - often exceeding one deer per 8–10 acres - which makes census counts and habitat management especially meaningful here. Introduced species are the common trap: exotics like axis deer or blackbuck may live on the property, but managing for them (alone) earns you nothing toward your three practices - so confirm every species you name in the plan is native to Texas before you file.
Does Llano County require a PWD-888 annual report every year?
The chief appraiser may require one whenever they ask - that is the statutory standard, and many Texas districts ask annually or on a review cycle. The practical answer is to assume it is coming: keep dated records, photos, and quantities for every practice as you go, and the report is a formality instead of a scramble. Landowners rarely lose a valuation because the work was not done; they lose it because the work could not be proven. What a strong PWD‑888 looks like →
Will switching from cattle to wildlife trigger rollback taxes in Llano County?
No. Rollback under Texas Tax Code §23.55 is triggered by a change to a non-agricultural use - developing, paving, or subdividing the land. Moving from grazing to wildlife management is a change of use within 1-d-1, so the valuation continues uninterrupted and no recapture is owed. What does carry risk is letting the land go idle: land quietly used for nothing agricultural can be treated as having changed use. A documented wildlife plan is precisely how you stay out of that gray zone. How rollback works →
Who approves the wildlife exemption in Llano County - TPWD or the appraisal district?
The appraisal district. The Llano County appraisal district’s chief appraiser reviews your Form 50‑129 and PWD‑885 plan and decides whether the land qualifies, the same as for any agricultural application. Texas Parks & Wildlife publishes the forms and the ecoregion guidelines your plan should match, but it does not approve individual properties and has no vote on your valuation. The district is headquartered in Llano; current contact details are in the Texas Comptroller’s county directory.

Looking for the statewide picture? The full Texas wildlife exemption FAQ covers eligibility, plans, practices, reports, and rollback in depth.

The Edwards Plateau counties closest to Llano County - same ecoregion, same intensity standards, and largely the same ground:

Burnet CountyGillespie CountySan Saba CountyMason CountyBlanco CountyMcCulloch County All 254 counties
Rio Grande wild turkey and northern bobwhite quail among native Texas grasses and limestone

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