MGL Chapter 20 Section 24 (a) is amended by striking the entire section and inserting in lieu thereof the following new section:

Section 24. (a) There shall be an agricultural lands preservation committee in the department of agricultural resources, the members of which shall be the commissioner of agricultural resources, who shall be chairman, the secretary of environmental affairs, the director of housing and community development, the director of the office of state planning, the chairman of the board of agricultural resources or their respective designees, and 6 members appointed by the governor, 2 of whom shall be owners and operators of farms within the commonwealth, one of whom shall represent a land trust and one of whom shall be a municipal official.  Members appointed by the governor shall receive $50 for each day or portion thereof spent in discharge of their official duties not to exceed $600 annually and shall be reimbursed for the necessary expenses incurred. The dean of the college of food and natural resources of the University of Massachusetts and the state conservationist of the United States Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service, or their respective designees, shall serve as nonvoting members.