Farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners who own or rent agricultural land are eligible to apply for EQIP. 530.402 EQIP Eligibility. Recovery assistance includes but is not limited to: If you are an agricultural producer affected by a disaster, please contact your local USDA Service Center for information about assistance in your specific area. With respect to livestock, over 60 percent of EQIP funds went to livestock-related practices during FY 2014 through 2018, but the 2018 Farm Bill reduced this target to 50 percent for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023. 1059g). 530.401 EQIP Funds Management. To apply, please contact your local NRCS office bit.ly/NRCSlocal. 1101a), or other minority-serving institution, such as an historically Black college or university (20 U.S.C. Response: The EQIP regulation gives States the greatest flexibility to adapt to local needs and determine high-priority practices in consultation with State technical committees and local working groups. Relocated provisions related to administration of Conservation Innovation Grants (CIGs) to its own subpart and incorporated the addition of On-farm Conservation Innovation Trials (On-farm Trial), which include the Soil Health Demonstration (SHD) Trial. The full regulatory impact analysis is available on https://www.regulations.gov/. documents in the last year, 62 Soil health testing is not a required part of every On-farm Trials project, although NRCS may apply the extent to which an On-farm Trial seeks to measure or improve soil health as a ranking consideration in the context of funding opportunities. 3846, and the administration of those programs, are—. Be sure to leave feedback using the 'Help' button on the bottom right of each page! Unlike the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), EQIP does not require enrollment of the entire operation. if(imgMarginLeft.indexOf("px") > 0){ Given a 3 percent discount rate, this translates into a projected annualized real cost to producers for implementing conservation practices of $855.10 million and projected annualized real transfers of $1.76 billion (Table 1). if(imgMarginBottom.indexOf("px") > 0){ Other comment suggested waiver criteria, such as if the contract addressed multiple natural resource concerns outlined in statute, service to multiple farm operations, or benefitted historically underserved producers. Response: NRCS will continue to adapt and innovate the application of science and technology to provide the best resource conservation possible through each of its programs, including EQIP. The title and number of the Federal Domestic Assistance Programs in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance to which this rule applies: 10.912—Environmental Quality Incentives Program. Response: NRCS appreciates the diverse array of views. Register documents. The authority citation for part 1466 continues to read as follows: Authority: Overall, given the current demand for regular enrollment in EQIP, and the currently uncertain impacts that conservation incentive contracts will have, the aggregate benefits from these new conservation incentive contracts may be limited. An eligible entity for the purposes of On-farm Trials includes a third-party private entity, the primary business of which is related to agriculture. } Other comment addressed the funding allocation for livestock practices, including disapproval of the statutory change from 60 percent to 50 percent, opinion that the 50 percent mandate was far too high, and request about how the national mandate is implemented on a State-by-State basis. Regarding publicly-owned land, NRCS considers whether the land is within the applicant's control (in other words, that the applicant can implement the terms of the EQIP contract), whether the land is a working component of the producer's agricultural or forestry operation (for example, that the producer uses the land for grazing), and whether conservation practices to be implemented on the public land are necessary and will contribute to an improvement in the identified resource concern. In the interim rule, in § 1466.24, NRCS updated the payment limitations for organic production from annual limits to an aggregate limit from FY 2019 through 2023, as required by the 2018 Farm Bill. For the May 1, Tribal consultation, the portion of the Tribal consultation relative to this rule was conducted by Bill Northey, USDA Under Secretary for the Farm Production and Conservation mission area, as part of the Title II session. 35), and. The “no action” alternative describes continuation of EQIP under its previous regulations. Comment: NRCS received comment related to EQIP administration, including comment addressing outreach, organic production, input from State advisory committees, funding targets, expanding the Working Lands for Wildlife model, additional training to employees, and allowing grazing on all land uses. Added “increased weather volatility” as a resource concern under the national priorities identified in the regulation. Most of this rule's impacts consist of transfer payments to producers for completed conservation practices under EQIP contracts. NRCS recognizes that a participant incurs costs in gaining access to EQIP. The comment Start Printed Page 67640period is not less than 30 days from the date of notice publication. (4) The purposes of EQIP are achieved by planning and implementing conservation practices on eligible land to address identified, new, or expected resource concerns, including such resource concerns related to lands enrolled under a Conservation Reserve Program contract that are transitioning into production as specified in 16 U.S.C. Document Drafting Handbook The. imgMarginRight = imgMarginRight.replace("px",""); It is not an official legal edition of the Federal Comment: NRCS received comment recommending specific targets and specific habitat and area restoration plans (such as prioritizing practices with a high environmental benefit but low adoption rate or offering longer contracts with additional payments for foregone income for practices that benefit wildlife). While every effort has been made to ensure that No additional language was added to the regulation in response to this issue. No change is being made to the regulation in response to this issue. a. The Public Inspection page If you are using public inspection listings for legal research, you NRCS estimates that the expenditures, from both public and private sources, of implementing EQIP conservation practices will be $13.6 billion dollars (FY 2019 through 2023), assuming a historical average participant cost of 40 percent and a technical assistance share of 27 percent. Through these practices, you can address natural resource concerns and deliver environmental benefits such as improved water and air quality, conserved ground and surface water, reduced soil erosion, and improved or created wildlife habitat. developer tools pages. Farmers and ranchers can now start making in-person appointments at several USDA Service Centers across the country as part of USDA’s phased reopening process. The contract limit of $900,000 is an appropriate size to draw a distinction between EQIP and other programs that may protect watersheds, such as RCPP or Watershed Operation Assistance under public law 83-566. No change is being made to the regulation in response to this issue. Comment also supported limiting EQIP funding for WMEs to contracts where the water users are farmers and ranchers. Clarified provisions related to contract administration, including procedures for contract modification and termination. Submission of public comment through Regulations.gov provides a more equitable and reliable system by which to collect comments within the stated timeframes. Response: NRCS appreciates the interest in EQIP from wildlife and conservation stakeholders. NRCS is committed to providing the highest quality service to its customers and partners, and these comments have been forwarded to the appropriate staff. EQIP promotes agricultural production, forest management, and environmental quality as compatible goals, and optimizes environmental benefits by assisting producers in addressing resource concerns on their operations. A Rule by the Commodity Credit Corporation on 10/26/2020. “The EQIP Program provides financial and technical assistance to help farmers and ranchers voluntary implement conservation practices to improve natural resources on working agricultural lands. Amend § 1466.6 by revising paragraph (d)(1) to read as follows: (1) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, NRCS may enter into an EQIP contract with a water management entity provided the criteria in paragraphs (d)(1)(i), (ii), and (iii) of this section can be met: (i) The entity is a public or semipublic agency or organization, (ii) Its purpose is to assist private agricultural producers manage water distribution or conservation systems, and. But, when a joint operation consisting of two or more members enters into an EQIP contract, the EQIP contract with the joint operation may receive funding of up to $900,000. In paragraph (b)(2)(viii), remove the word “and”; c. Redesignate paragraph (b)(2)(xi) as paragraph (b)(2)(x). No change is being made to the regulation in response to this issue. Popular EQIP practices include cover crops, nutrient management, forest stand improvement, prescribed grazing, irrigation efficiency improvement and water quality improvement practices. documents in the last year, 296 These comments do not include any recommendations for change.
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