Senators John Thune of South Dakota and Minnesota’s Amy Klobuchar reintroduced the Conservation Reserve Program Improvement Act.
A Republican and Democrat, respectively, the bill bolsters the CRP by improving access to grazing, maximizing enrollment options for producers, and addressing implementation issues following the 2018 Farm Bill.
“After hearing from South Dakotans, it’s clear that we need to keep working to ensure that CRP continues to be an effective option for producers and landowners,” Thune says.
Among the improvements, the bill would increase the CRP annual payment limitation from $50,000, established in 1985, to $125,000 to account for inflationary and rising land value pressures and provide more enrollment options.
“The Conservation Reserve Program helps equip our farmers with tools to conserve and improve soil, water quality, and wildlife habitat,” Klobuchar says.“
This bipartisan legislation makes commonsense improvements to the CRP that will strengthen conservation practices and boost enrollment in this vital program.
