USDA plays active role in
farmland protection
he U.S. Department of
agriculture, through its
Natural Resources
Conservation Service
(NRCS), is an active
partner with America’s farmers and
ranchers in helping to protect agricultural
land. One way it accomplishes
this is with the Farm and Ranch Lands
Protection Program (FRPP), a voluntary
land conservation program.
The program provides matching
funds to state, tribal or local governments
and non-governmental organizations
with existing farm and ranch
land protection programs to purchase
conservation easements. The program
was first authorized in 1985 as the
Farmland Protection Program. The
Farm Security and Rural Investment
Act of 2002 (2002 Farm Bill) added
ranch land to the program and reauthorized
it as the Farm and Ranch
Lands Protection Program (FRPP).
Under this program (through
2002), more than 170,000 acres have
been protected in 35 states.
How FRPP Works
Eligible entities acquire conservation
easements from landowners. Participating
landowners agree not to
convert their land to non-agricultural
uses and to develop and implement a
conservation plan for any highly
erodible land. All highly erodible
lands enrolled must have a conservation
plan developed based on the standards
in the NRCS Field Office Technical
Guide and approved by the local
conservation district. Landowners
retain all rights to use the property for
agriculture.
To participate, a landowner submits
an application to an entity a state,
tribal, or local government or a nongovernmental
organization that has
an existing farm or ranch land protection
program. The NRCS state conservationist,
with advice from the
State Technical Committee, awards
funds to qualified entities to purchase
perpetual conservation easements.
Eligibility
To qualify for FRPP, the land
offered must be part or all of a farm or
ranch and must:
- Contain prime, unique or other
productive soil or historical or archaeological
resources;
- Be included in a pending offer
from a state, tribal or local government
or non-governmental organization’s
farmland protection program;
- Be privately owned;
- Be covered by a conservation
plan for any highly erodible land;
- Be large enough to sustain agricultural
production;
- Be accessible to markets for what
the land produces;
- Be surrounded by parcels of land
that can support long-term agricultural
production; and
- Be owned by an individual or
entity that does not exceed the Adjusted
Gross Income (AGI) limitation.
The AGI provision of the 2002
Farm Bill impacts eligibility for
FRPP and several other 2002 Farm
Bill programs. Individuals or entities
that have an average AGI exceeding
$2.5 million for the three tax years
immediately preceding the year the
contract is approved are not eligible
to receive program benefits or payments.
However, an exemption is
provided in cases where 75 percent of
the AGI is derived from farming,
ranching, or forestry operations. The
final rule for this provision has not
yet been published.
If the land cannot be converted to
non-agricultural uses because of
existing deed restrictions or other
legal constraints, it is ineligible for
FRPP.
Funding
FRPP is funded through the Commodity
Credit Corporation. The
FRPP share of the easement cost
must not exceed 50 percent of the
appraised fair market value of the
conservation easement. As part of its
share of the cost of purchasing a conservation
easement, a state, tribal, or
local government or non-governmental
organization may include a charitable
donation by the landowner of
up to 25 percent of the appraised fair
market value of the conservation
easement. A cooperating entity must
provide, in cash, 25 percent of the
appraised fair market value of the
conservation easement or 50 percent
of the purchase price.
For more information
If you need more information
about FRPP, please contact your local
USDA Service Center, listed in the
telephone book under U.S. Department
of Agriculture, or your local
conservation district. Information also
is available on the World Wide Web
at: http:// www.nrcs.usda.gov/
programs/farmbill/2002/.