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1 (January 3, 2008)

handle is hein.crs/crsmthabcbk0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Order Code RS21613 Updated January 3, 2008 CRS Report for Congress Conservation Reserve Program: Status and Current Issues Tadlock Cowan Analyst in Natural Resources and Rural Development Policy Resources, Science, and Industry Division Summary The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), enacted in 1985, provides payments to farmers to take highly erodible or environmentally sensitive cropland out of production for ten years or more to conserve soil and water resources. It is the federal government' s largest private land retirement program. The program is administered by the Farm Service Agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), with technical assistance provided by USDA' s Natural Resources Conservation Service. The CRP has several subprograms, the best-known of which is the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). In 2004, USDA announced two CRP initiatives: one to enroll 250,000 acres of bobwhite quail habitat and a second to enroll 250,000 acres of non-floodplain wetlands. An Emergency Forestry CRP was established in 2006 to address forestry damage by 2005 hurricanes. The House- and Senate-passed farm bills (H.R. 2419 and S.Amdt. 3500, respectively) reauthorize CRP at the current acreage cap of 39.2 million acres. The Senate measure includes a provision for a pilot program for enrollment of wetland and buffer acreage into CRP. Both the House and Senate bills also direct the National Agricultural Statistical Service to conduct annual surveys of cash rental rates and to make these rates publicly available. Current national enrollment stands at 36.8 million acres. Acting Secretary Conner has announced that there will be no general CRP sign-up in FY2008. Between 2007 and 2010, 27.8 million acres under CRP contracts will expire. Contracts for approximately 23 million (83%) of these acres have been renewed or extended. This report will be updated periodically. Current Issues House- and Senate-Passed Farm Bills. The House passed its version of the 2007 farm bill (H.R. 2419) on July 27, 2007. The Senate passed its version (S.Amdt. 3500) on December 14, 2007. The bills reauthorize the CRP at its current acreage cap of 39.2 million acres established in the 2002 farm bill (P. L. 107-17 1). A provision in the Congressional Research Service The Library of Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress

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