CRP Continuous Enrollment Period Beginning June 4, 2018

FSA is holding a continuous signup period for CRP (signup 51), running from June 4, 2018 to August 17, 2018.

CRP is a voluntary program that contracts with agricultural producers so that environmentally sensitive agricultural land is used for conservation benefits. CRP participants establish long-term, resource-conserving vegetative species, such as approved grasses or trees (known as “covers”), to control soil erosion, improve the water quality and enhance wildlife habitat. In return, FSA provides participants with annual rental payments and cost-share assistance. Continuous signup enrollment contracts are 10 to 15 years in duration.

FSA administers CRP while technical support functions are provided by:

• USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS);
• State forestry agencies;
• Local soil and water conservation districts; and
• Other non-federal providers of technical assistance.

About the Continuous Signup

Under continuous CRP signup, environmentally sensitive land devoted to certain conservation practices can be enrolled in CRP at any time. Offers are automatically accepted provided the land and producer meet certain eligibility requirements and the enrollment levels do not exceed the statutory cap. Unlike CRP enrollments under general CRP signups or CRP Grasslands, offers for continuous enrollment are not subject to competitive bidding during specific periods.

Producers submitting acceptable CRP offers for the listed conservation practices must have a conservation plan developed and the contract approved no later than September 28, 2018.

If the offered acres are currently enrolled in CRP under a CRP contract that expires September 30, 2018, then the effective start date of the new CRP contract must be October 1, 2018.

If the offered acres are not currently enrolled in CRP then the producer may choose to defer the effective start date of the new CRP contract for up to six months after the offer is approved. All acceptable signup 51 continuous offers must be approved no later than September 28, 2018.

To offer land for continuous enrollment, producers should contact their local FSA office.

Eligible Producers

A producer must have owned or operated the land for at least 12 months prior to submitting the offer, unless:

• The new owner acquired the land due to the previous owner’s death;
• The ownership change occurred due to foreclosure where the owner exercised a timely right of redemption in accordance with state law; or
• The circumstances of the acquisition present adequate assurance to FSA that the new owner did not acquire the land for the purpose of placing it in CRP.

Eligible Land

Land must be cropland that is planted or considered planted to an agricultural commodity four of the six crop years from 2008 to 2013, and is physically and legally capable of being planted (no planting restrictions due to an easement or other legally binding instrument) in a normal manner to an agricultural commodity. Certain marginal pastureland that may be devoted to riparian buffers is also eligible.

Eligible Practices

For this signup, the land must be eligible and suitable for any of the following conservation practices:

• Grass Waterways, Non-easement
• Shallow Water Area for Wildlife
• Filter Strips
• Denitrifying Bioreactor on Filter Strips
• Saturated Filter Strips
• Riparian Buffer
• Denitrifying Bioreactor on Riparian Buffers
• Saturated Riparian Buffer
• Wetland Restoration on Floodplain
• Wetland Restoration, Non-floodplain
• Farmable Wetlands Pilot Wetland
• Farmable Wetland Pilot Buffer
• Duck Nesting Habitat
• FWP Constructed Wetland
• FWP Aquaculture Wetland restoration
• FWP Flooded Prairie Wetland

Payments

Under CRP continuous signup, FSA provides eligible participants with annual rental payments and cost-share assistance. Signup and practice incentives, as well as certain rental rate incentives are not available for this signup period.

Annual Rental Payments In return for establishing long-term, resource- conserving covers, FSA provides annual rental payments to eligible participants based on per acre cropland and marginal pasture land rental rates determined by FSA. The per-acre annual rental rate may not exceed the calculated rate determined in advance of enrollment. While enrollment under CRP continuous signup is not determined by a competitive offer process with the exception of CRP Grasslands, producers may elect to receive a rental rate amount less than the maximum payment rate.

Cost-Share Assistance: Cost-share of up to 50 percent of the re-reimbursable cost of installing the practice is provided by FSA.

Download the CRP Continuous Enrollment Period Fact Sheet here.