Farm Bill Conservation Debate
Senators Put Down Markers for USDA Conservation Programs in Next Farm Bill
WASHINGTON (DTN) -- In preaching the emphasis of "voluntary, incentive-based" conservation programs at USDA, members of the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee on Wednesday also put down some markers and red lines for conservation incentives in the next farm bill.
Leaders for USDA conservation and forestry programs testified Wednesday before the committee, which continues to check off hearings for different parts of the farm bill.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., chairwoman of the committee, stressed the importance of senators moving to "pass the next farm bill with strong bi-partisan support." She credited support lent to conservation and forestry through roughly $40 billion in combined funding under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). With that funding, Stabenow said, "We are finally able to address the backlog of farmers who want to be able to use these important conservation tools."
Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., ranking member of the committee, reiterated the need for "working lands conservation" and ensuring that programs such as the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) provide flexibility to deal with "producer-focused concerns" at the local level.
Boozman noted, "cover crops might not work in dry climates," but capturing water, preventing erosion and providing wildlife habitat are equally as important as sequestering carbon and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, Boozman said.
Boozman also stressed that the push for conservation should not mean Congress "take on risky proposals that endanger the safety net." He added, "Tying crop insurance to incentives for certain conservation practices -- dictated by those in Washington, D.C., -- should be off the table so we can ensure this program continues to serve as a vital risk management tool for producers."
Those comments come after the Congressional Accountability Office (GAO) last month issued a report recommending USDA add more conservation requirements or incentives for crop insurance and commodity programs.
A collection of 80 farm and environmental groups, the Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance (FACA) last week also proposed providing more incentives for farmers to adopt cover crops and other climate-smart practices possibly through "new crop-insurance policies and endorsements."
Stabenow asked Terry Cosby, chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service, what more could be done to "identify practices that have a carbon benefit" for specialty crop producers as well as dairy, livestock and farmers impacted by drought in western states. Stabenow said she has heard from fruit and vegetable producers "who would like to do more" on climate-smart production.
Cosby highlighted the $19.5 billion in funding in the IRA for USDA conservation programs as an "historic, once-in-a-generation investment and opportunity" to address climate change.
The funding also will help deal with the backlog of producers who want to enroll in EQIP, CSP or conservation easement programs. Since the 2018 farm bill, Cosby said USDA has been able to fund about 30% of the applications for those programs. Cosby said EQIP alone had more than 100,000 applications last year. In mid-February, NRCS released $850 million to boost enrollment in some of its programs.
"The IRA is going to give us an opportunity to expand these programs," Cosby said.
CRP RENTAL RATES
Zach Ducheneaux, administrator for the Farm Service Agency, fielded questions about the Conservation Reserve Program, which is authorized for 27 million acres, though about 23 million acres are in the program right now. Ducheneaux said enrollment is on the rise as USDA has enhanced rental payments for landowners who establish land cover in programs such the grasslands component of CRP.
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"We now have the program on an upward trajectory of enrollment," Ducheneaux said.
Ducheneaux had opposing conversations with senators over those CRP rental rates. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., pointed to the historic drought in western states, adding he will sound like a "broken record" on those issues throughout the work on the farm bill. On CRP, Bennet said his farmers and landowners are being offered as low as $13 to $15 an acre in some counties "in the heart of the Dust Bowl region" while farmers in other areas of the country are getting $300 an acre.
"CRP rates need to better reflect the reality of the situation we are all confronting in the West," Bennet said.
Yet Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said the Biden administration is taking actions that take more farmland out of production, arguing a conservative claim that the administration's plan conserve 30% of land, "30x30" is impacting land access for producers.
Cosby told Grassley that conservation under the 30x30 program includes working lands that are part of USDA programs, though CRP has been part of that discussion
Grassley also challenged USDA for boosting CRP rental rates with incentives for certain climate-smart practices. Those boosts in payments violate Congress' move to cap CRP rates at 85% of the county rental rates. The premiums to CRP rates "compete with farmers," Grassley said.
"Iowa has the most productive farmland in the world, and we should not be putting that land into permanent conservation," Grassley said.
Ducheneaux said FSA works with local county offices on the rental rates and also maintains the cap of enrolling under 25% of acreage in a county. He also agreed with Grassley that CRP should "only be setting aside the most environmentally sensitive and marginal," as Grassley stressed.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said she and Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., had introduced a bill to look at how conservation practices affect yields and production. They also introduced the CRP Improvement Act to look at a cost-share program for grazing practices on CRP.
Thune later added that CRP should be used more for working lands such as grazing and USDA has been too restrictive in providing assistance.
"As a livestock guy myself, I like to see livestock on the landscape," Ducheneaux replied.
REGULATORY HEADACHES
Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said she has heard from farmers talking more about the regulatory burdens of enrolling in USDA conservation programs. "I'm just not going to participate because there is too much involved here," Ernst said, asking how USDA can streamline program enrollment.
Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., followed up on a similar theme as Ernst. She pointed to both flooding and wildfire disasters in her state. Fischer said farmers were told to sign up for the Emergency Conservation Program, but producers faced paperwork headaches and a slow payment process getting that aid.
Ducheneaux agreed that problem needs to be solved, adding that if farmers and livestock producers face problems enrolling in programs in their time of need, that's going to prevent them from being proactive and trying to use USDA conservation programs in the future.
"We really need to contemplate the cost of exclusion," Ducheneaux said.
Fischer also pressed for a commitment from Cosby to ensure livestock producers get an equal chance at the $8.45 billion in EQIP funds under the IRA bill. The farm bill requires livestock producers get 50% of EQIP funding, but that language was not in the IRA.
"We try hard on this committee to be bipartisan and we work together to try to address noncontroversial issues," Fischer said. "Shouldn't USDA follow what the authorizing committee sets forth, no matter where the money is coming from?".
Cosby replied, "Whatever this committee decides, that's what we will follow."
Link for full hearing video: https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/…
See, "GAO Suggests Tighter Crop Insurance, Farm Program Rules Tied to Climate Resilience,"
Also see, "Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance Lays Out Policy Agenda for Farm Bill,"
Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com
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