FARM SERVICE AGENCY

1. FARM SERVICE AGENCY Conservation Reserve Program

2. OVERVIEW • Goals • History • Agencies involved with CRP • Eligibility Criteria • Compliance & Eligibility Roles • Getting ready for next signup • Where we are today

3. CRP GOALS • Conserve and improve our nation’s natural resource base • Protect soil, water, and wildlife resources • Improve and preserve water quality • Enhance fish and wildlife habitat • Increase enrollment in high priority continuous practices

4. CRP HISTORY • Conceived originally as a Land Idling, Acreage Reduction, Soil Conservation Program • Concept began during the Soil Bank ERA • Re-established by Congress in 1985 • Now, the nation’s largest, premier program for protecting natural resources and enhancing our environment • Offers annual rental payments and cost-share assistance to eligible producers that establish perennial covers to: - reduce soil erosion - improve water quality - enhance wildlife habitat

5. AGENCIES INVOLVED WITH CRP • State and Federal Agencies: • Kansas Conservation Commission • Conservation Districts • Forest Service • Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS)

6. FSA/NRCS ROLE IN CRP • FSA has administrative responsibility for CRP • State Committee supervises the county committee • County Committee supervises county offices of day to day operations • NRCS provides technical support for CRP • Conservation planning • Technical specifications for practice installation • Evaluating soil payment rates • Cost-Share policies • And other requirements

7. RESPONSIBILITIES OF OTHER AGENCIES • Technical Support Provider (TSP) assist county offices in technical aspects such as: • Identifying soil types for calculating maximum payment rates for continuous signup • Developing and certifying an approved conservation plan • Forest Service through the TSP develops the tree planting plans • Conservation Districts approve conservation plans • Conservation Commission • Extension Service – Information & Education

8. OVERVIEW ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA • Producer Eligibility • Land Eligibility • Practice Eligibility

9. General Own land 12 months before the close of signup for general signup offers Acquired the land by will or succession Acquired the land under circumstances other than for placement in CRP, as determined by DAFP Continuous Producer eligibility requirements are the same as general Owned land for 12 months before submitting the offer PRODUCER ELIGIBILITY

10. General Planted or considered planted to an agricultural commodity during 4 of the 6 crop years from 1996 through 2001 Physically & legally capable of being planted in a normal manner to an agricultural commodity, as determined by COC Continuous Has to meet the general requirements Exception: The land that is enrolled in CRP as marginal pastureland does not have to meet the definition of cropland LAND ELIGIBILITYCROPLAND

11. General Erodibility Expiring CRP Conservation Priority Areas (CPA) WBP Acres Continuous Practice offered is eligible practice for continuous Practice and acreage offered meet the program policy and size requirements for the practice LAND ELIGIBILITY Cont.

12. It must meet the purpose for the practice spelled out in the practice specifications Example: CP21 Filter Strips; the purpose for this practice is to remove nutrients, sediment, organic matter, pesticides, and other pollutants from surface runoff and subsurface flow. Installing this practice in situations where the balance of the field is seeded to perennial cover would not meet the purpose of this practice. PRACTICE ELIGIBILITY-General and Continuous Signups-

13. COMPLIANCE & ELIGIBILITY ROLES • Compliance—agree to terms and conditions of contracts • Eligibility requirements must be met in order to qualify for U.S.D.A. programs

14. COMPLIANCE & ELIGIBILITY ROLES Cont. • Eligibility requirements include: • Adjusted gross income • Payment Limitation • Person determination • Actively engaged determination • Conservation Compliance • Highly Erodable Land Compliance (HELC) • Wetland Compliance (WC) • All other programs

15. GETTING READY FOR NEXT GENERAL SIGNUP • The next sign up will be in 2004 • CPA Review • County cropland limitation • Soil rental rate review

16. ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS INDEX • Applies only to General Signups • Offers for CRP sign-up 29 will be ranked according to the Environmental Benefits Index (EBI) • FSA collects data for each of the EBI factors based on the relative environmental benefits for the land offered • EBI rankings are unique for each piece of ground offered into CRP • Each offer is assigned a point score based on its relative environmental factors and competes with all other offers

17. ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS INDEX Cont. • EBI factors • Wildlife • Water Quality • Erosion • Enduring Benefits • Air Quality • Cost

18. CCRP SIGNUP • Continuous—Signup 28—Began 10/1/03 • High Priority Practices—small acreage --significant Environmental Benefits • Water Quality • Incentives—SIP, PIP, 20%-10% • Partner with governors Water Quality Initiative buffer—KS Conservation Commission

19. CCRP STATUSKANSAS TOTALS • Continuous Grass Buffer Strips 5,074 acres • Filter Strip Buffers 22,088 acres • Riparian Buffers 4,329 acres • Grass Waterways 6,617 acres

20. WHERE WE ARE TODAYIN KANSAS • There are currently • 2,842,179.5 acres enrolled • 40,569 contracts • Practices • General Signup CP1 & CP2 • More & more focus on continuous signup

21. Any Questions?