TRCP Partners Welcome Senate Farm Bill Proposal, Urge Additional Progress

News for Immediate Release

October 24, 2007

Contact: Geoff Mullins, 202-654-4609, gmullins@trcp.org

TRCP Partners Welcome Senate Farm Bill Proposal, Urge Additional Progress

Hunting, fishing and conservation groups see promise in Agriculture Committee’s starting point; look to legislators for key improvements

WASHINGTON – A broad coalition of hunting, fishing and conservation organizations that keeps close watch on the conservation programs in the Farm Bill greeted a draft proposal of the legislation offered today by the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee with optimism, but noted the need for additional funding.

“It appears that they’ve found $3.7 billion in additional funding for the Farm Bill’s Conservation Title, which is undoubtedly a good thing,” said Dave Nomsen of Pheasants Forever, a co-chair of the TRCP Agriculture and Wildlife Working Group, which met for two years to analyze for the Farm Bill Conservation Title and offer recommendations for the future scope of the programs it contains. “Chairman Harkin and his colleagues should be applauded for elevating the discussion surrounding conservation and making it a priority. The funding increases we see in this draft were sorely needed to maintain some pretty important existing programs.

“But it must be noted that 34 groups in our community have formally called for $6 billion in new funding, the number we feel is truly needed to get the job done,” Nomsen continued. “We look forward to working with the Chairman and the other members of the committee during this process to grow conservation in programs like the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) whose funding levels have remained at their 2002 amounts thus far.”

The programs contained in the Farm Bill’s Conservation Title represent the single largest federal investment in conservation on private land, and their scope is of huge importance to fish and wildlife. Two of America's most popular conservation programs, the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) and the Grasslands Reserve Program (GRP), face the reauthorization of the Farm Bill without any money. The Senate draft reauthorizes both programs but the acreage allocated for GRP is almost half as much as the 2002 level.

“We are pleased to see that the Senate bill renews these programs,” said Barton James of Ducks Unlimited, another co-chair of the working group. “There is very little wiggle room however – it is vital that the increases found thus far for conservation remain intact and that we support committee members in their efforts to build on this investment.”

Also included in the Senate draft is an Open Fields access provision that would help fund state-managed, voluntary sportsmen’s access programs. Program funds will enhance wildlife management and improve recreational opportunities on land enrolled in Farm Bill conservation programs. Landowner assurances that reduce liability and risk can be provided through the state-managed public access programs. “We have been advocating for Open Fields for several years and we are very pleased to see this included in the Farm Bill,” said George Cooper, President and CEO of the TRCP. “Our nation’s sporting and outdoor heritage is vital to rural America and Open Fields will go a long way to abating the recent declines in the numbers of hunters and anglers.”

America’s farms, ranches and forests offer the greatest opportunity for enhancing our nation’s clean water, fresh air, and providing healthy fish and wildlife habitat that is enjoyed by millions of sportsmen. “While Farm Bill conservation programs directly address the conservation needs of farmers and ranchers, they also benefit every citizen in every state,” said Jen Mock Schaeffer of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the remaining AWWG co-chair. “We are encouraged by the Senate’s initial funding increases that we can make conservation an even larger priority over the next five years.”

In a time when greater agricultural demands are placed on our nation’s soil, water and other resources, the resulting strain on healthy fish and wildlife habitat has also increased. “It only makes sense that as payments and programs dedicated to production agriculture are increased, then so too should the incentives and programs dedicated to conserving fish and wildlife habitat,” continued Mock Schaeffer.

Conservation programs in the Farm Bill currently represent only 5 percent of the total U.S. Department of Agriculture budget. This investment has proven inadequate in recent years as some 74 percent of conservation program applications go unfunded. The sportsmen’s and conservation community is unified in its recommendations for increased conservation funding and would oppose strongly any amendments that would move funding from conservation to other farm programs.

For more information on our work to shape the conservation programs in the next Farm Bill, please click here.

Inspired by the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt, the TRCP is a coalition of organizations and grassroots partners working together to preserve the traditions of hunting and fishing.