"Supporting Farmers, Strengthening Conservation, Sustaining Working Lands"

House Subcommittee on Conservation, Research, and Biotechnology

2025-06-05

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Source: Congress.gov

Summary

This hearing focused on the importance of Farm Bill conservation programs for supporting farmers, strengthening conservation efforts, and sustaining working lands across the nation. Members of the subcommittee and witnesses emphasized the critical role these voluntary, incentive-based programs play in addressing natural resource concerns and adapting to changing environmental conditions, while also discussing potential improvements and funding stability for the next Farm Bill.[ 00:20:08-00:20:21 ]

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Themes

Importance of Farm Bill Conservation Programs and Funding

Farm Bill conservation programs are vital for the long-term viability of farmers, ranchers, and rural communities, providing tools to improve soil health, manage water efficiently, and enhance resilience against extreme weather events.[ 00:20:18-00:20:21 ]

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 The roots of the conservation system trace back to the 1930s Dust Bowl, leading to the establishment of agencies like the NRCS to promote voluntary conservation practices.[ 00:20:26-00:21:28 ]

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 These programs, including EQIP, CSP, ACEP, and RCPP, are highly successful but chronically underfunded, with demand often exceeding available resources. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provided significant, time-limited funding for conservation, and there is a strong push to move unobligated IRA funds into the Farm Bill baseline to ensure permanent investment and long-term stability for these programs. Doing so would eliminate "climate sideboards" and allow for more local prioritization, reflecting diverse regional needs.[ 01:30:05 ]

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Technical Assistance and Staffing Needs

The availability of technical service providers (TSPs) and NRCS staff is crucial for the successful implementation and accessibility of conservation programs. Without sufficient TSPs, producers face challenges in developing conservation plans, completing documentation, and receiving expert guidance. Concerns were raised about potential cuts to Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA) funding and reductions in NRCS staffing, which could severely hinder farmers' ability to access and utilize these programs effectively. The lack of technical assistance disproportionately affects underserved farmers and can lead to disruptions in long-term conservation planning and project implementation.[ 02:06:54 ]

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Local Leadership and Program Flexibility

A consistent theme was the effectiveness of conservation programs due to their voluntary, incentive-based, and locally-led nature. Local stakeholders possess deep understanding of their land and ecosystems, allowing for tailored conservation projects that are more efficient and impactful. Mandates or a "one-size-fits-all" approach can stifle implementation and limit producers' ability to adopt unique practices suitable for their operations. The importance of flexibility extends to contract lengths and practice options, enabling farmers to customize efforts to their specific needs and regional conditions.

Addressing Climate Change and Natural Disasters

Producers are directly experiencing the impacts of climate change, including longer droughts, harsher rains, and extreme weather events that make farming more challenging. Conservation practices, such as cover crops, reduced tillage, and watershed management, are crucial for mitigating erosion, improving soil health, and increasing resilience against these disasters. USDA conservation programs like EQIP and the Watershed and Flood Prevention Program help landowners prepare for and recover from natural disasters by funding erosion reduction measures, water retention solutions, and flood protection infrastructure.

Program Simplification and Accessibility

The complexity of conservation program applications and excessive paperwork were identified as significant barriers to participation, particularly for small and beginning farmers.[ 01:37:14 ]

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 Streamlining application processes and providing clear eligibility requirements are essential for making programs more practical and accessible, while also accommodating new technologies like precision agriculture. Simplifying program delivery and reducing administrative bottlenecks, as proposed for RCPP, would ensure resources reach producers more expeditiously.[ 01:54:26 ]

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Farmland Preservation

The continuous loss of agricultural land to development poses a threat to food security and the viability of the agricultural sector. Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) subprograms, like the Agricultural Land Easement (ALE), are crucial tools for preserving farmland by allowing landowners to extract equity without selling for development, keeping land in private ownership and agriculture. Easements encourage reinvestment in agriculture, facilitate land transfer to new farmers, and spur additional conservation practices, contributing to rural economies and job creation.

Tone of the Meeting

The overall tone of the meeting was one of bipartisan agreement on the fundamental importance and effectiveness of Farm Bill conservation programs.[ 00:25:40 ]

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 There was a strong consensus on the need for increased, stable funding and the value of voluntary, locally-led approaches. While there was broad agreement on goals, some disagreements emerged regarding the administration's handling of specific programs, particularly concerns about the impact of USDA budget cuts on staffing and the cancellation of the Climate Smart Commodities program.[ 01:00:33 ]

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 Members and witnesses expressed a collective commitment to working together to strengthen these vital programs for the future.

Participants

Transcript

The committee will come to order.  Welcome and thank you for joining today's hearing entitled Supporting Farmers, Strengthening Conservation, and Sustaining Working Lands.  After brief opening remarks, members will receive their testimony from our witnesses today and then the hearing will be open to questions.   In consultation with the ranking member and pursuant to Rule 11E, I want to make members of the subcommittee aware that other members of the full committee may be joining us today.  Good morning.  Welcome to today's Conservation Research and Biotechnology Subcommittee hearing.  Today we'll be examining farm bill conservation programs and hearing from a distinguished panel of witnesses for their perspectives.   Title 2 of the Farm Bill authorizes a suite of conservation programs that are critical for supporting the long-term viability of farmers, ranchers, and rural communities.  These programs have the dual benefit of supporting the producer and addressing pressing natural resource concerns at the local level.   As we have today's discussion, hear about the programs, and discuss potential improvements, it's important that we have some context for why and how our system of farm conservation developed over many years.  The roots of our conservation system date back to the 1930s and the actions that the federal government took in response to the Dust Bowl.  In the 19th century, the Homestead Act was enacted with the best of intentions.   but it had unintended consequences.  When settlers came west in search of fertile land to farm, it didn't take long for them to realize that the sandy soils in the southern Great Plains were susceptible to erosion when unprotected, or not protected, I should say, by native vegetation.  Coupled with severe drought conditions, this led to massive dust storms in Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas in the 1930s.   Perhaps the worst fell on April 14, 1935, a day that has become known as Black Sunday.  The dust storms were so severe, their effects were felt far beyond the southern Great Plains, gathering attention of lawmakers in Washington.
Only 13 days after Black Sunday, President Roosevelt signed legislation into law establishing the then-named Soil Conservation Service.   Renamed the Natural Resources Conservation Service in 1996, the agency administers most of the Farm Bill conservation programs and provides technical assistance for others administered by the Farm Service Agency.  Voluntary conservation practices are critically important for supporting agriculture and ensuring we don't have another dust bowl again.   With this year marking the 90th anniversary of both Black Sunday and the establishment of the now named NRCS, today's hearing is timely to hear more about these programs and how Congress may be able to further improve them.  We are currently in the second extension of the 2018 Farm Bill, and rural America badly needs legislation to reflect the current status of agriculture and the rural economy.   this extends the conservation programs and reforms we can include to build on the progress we've made in recent farm bills last year's committee passed farm bill proposed historic new funding for conservation programs by rescinding the unobligated uh... inflation reduction act funding and reinvesting it in title two   The House-passed reconciliation bill similarly reinvests the unobligated IRA funding into the conservation title.  Reallocating those dollars would increase the title's baseline over the long term, making it a permanent investment in conservation programs.  It also allows for continued support for orphan programs, increased funding for successful programs like small watershed program, and the creation of new forestry easement program.   In addition to funding, last year's bill placed an emphasis on science, technology, and innovation.  The bill makes precision agriculture specifically eligible for cost share under EQIP and CSP, requires more frequent updates to conservation practice standards, and creates an Office of Innovation at the Office of the Secretary.
The bill streamlines RCPP, provides common sense flexibility for ACEP, and reforms the technical service provider program.  The bill also proposes a modernization of CRP and focusing the program on marginal lands by incorporating soil capacity class into rental rates for general enrollment.  These are all welcome changes intended to improve program administration and make them more producer friendly.   Farm Bill Conservation Programs have been so successful because they are voluntary, incentive-based, and producer-first.   programs have also been so effective because they are locally led which allows for states and regions to determine the priority natural resource concerns as we think about the next farm bill it's important for us to keep all of this in mind conservation programs have been so effective because the flexibility built into them and because we have continually encouraged the local led process to work   i'm proud of the work that this committee has done over the past several farm bill cycles to improve the programs because we know voluntary conservation works i'd like to welcome all of our witnesses today and thank ranking member takoda for her partnership on this hearing and with that i yield to the ranking member for any opening remarks that she would like to provide   Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.  Good morning.  Aloha, everyone.  Thank you for being at our convening today.  As ranking member, I'm proud to join you and our colleagues in reaffirming a shared commitment to supporting America's farmers, ranchers, and producers   through smart, effective conservation policy.  I also want to thank our panel of witnesses for being here today and extend an especially warm mahalo to Nicole Galassi for traveling all the way, I think she came the farthest, all the way from Hawaii to share the perspective of food producers operating in some of the most remote and climate vulnerable parts of the country.
Now, let's begin with some common ground.  USDA conservation programs work.  Whether it's EQIP, CSP, ACEP, RCPP, the whole alphabet soup of acronyms, these programs provide practical tools to improve soil health, manage water more efficiently, and keep operations productive and resilient.   But here's the hard truth.  The weather isn't what it used to be, no matter what you want to call it.  Climate change, extreme weather, shifting seasons.  Our producers are living it every day.  Longer droughts, harder rains, heat waves in April, frost in May.  It's getting harder to grow the food, fuel, and fiber that this country relies on.

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