Land Core Newsletter - June 2024
Image Credit: Marko Blažević, Unsplash
Dear friends and colleagues,
We hope your summer is off to a good start! In the past month there has been more Farm Bill activity, including the release of the Senate Ag Minority leadership framework. The House Appropriations Committee also released the Ag-FDA spending bill and held a markup. Below you can find an overview of this recent activity, as well as a summary of our latest Federal Bill Tracker alert, including some new tracker features!
Read on for more, including a call for nominations for FSA County Committees, upcoming events and funding opportunities, and a look at what we’ve been reading.
Warmly,
The Land Core Team
Policy Updates
Farm Bill Updates
In addition to the Senate Majority Farm Bill draft released in May, on June 11, Senate Agriculture Committee ranking member Sen. John Boozman (R-AR) released the Senate Minority Farm Bill framework.
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) gave a statement saying that the release of Sen. Boozman’s plan was a “welcome development” and that it was now time “to build upon the areas where we share common ground, of which there are many, and do the hard work of reaching a bipartisan compromise so we can finish our work.“ However, this framework largely follows House Chairman Thompson’s approach, leaving major political differences between the two parties unresolved.
While the House Farm Bill awaits floor time, some representatives believe there is too little legislative time left this year to pass the Farm Bill. Nevertheless, we continue to urge Congress to overcome political headwinds and pass a bipartisan farm bill as soon as possible, with strong provisions for soil health.
Ag-Appropriations
The House Appropriations Committee released their FY25 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee spending bill on June 10, with a markup held on June 11. The spending bill has a total discretionary allocation of $25.873 billion, which is $355 million (1.35%) below the FY24 enacted level and $2.688 billion (9.4%) below the President’s Budget Request. Report language has not yet been released with specific details on the spending levels of various programs, including those that would benefit soil health.
Republicans have begun to make progress on an ambitious schedule for passing their version of the FY25 spending bills. They want all 12 appropriations bills out of the Appropriations Committee by mid-July and passed on the House floor by the start of August recess. A Senate timeline has yet to be announced.
ICYMI: You can check out our mini-blog part two for an overview of the appropriations process, a recap of FY24 funding and Land Core’s requests, including ag-approps report language directing USDA to study the risk-reducing benefits of soil health practices!
Bill Tracker
Last week we released a Federal Bill Tracker alert, featuring soil health “marker bills” recently introduced into Congress, and new analysis from our team, showing which bills in our tracker made it into the House version of the Farm Bill. To help you keep track of it all, we have added a few new features, including a “Farm Bill Status” section for any marker bill that has been included in any full version of the Farm Bill (for now, the House bill). We’ve added brief analysis, including if we know if the bill was included either partially or in full.
“Farm Bill Status” now indicates if a marker bill has been included in a version of a Farm Bill (e.g. in House Ag Committee text, or eventually, if it’s included in the final Farm Bill bill that’s passed into law).
As always, you can sort bills by various issue areas, but now you can also sort bills by “Farm Bill” for a quick way to scan for bills included in the Farm Bill. Additionally, we have added “Specialty Crops,” given the increase in related legislation in recent months.
Select “Specialty Crops” or “Farm Bill” under Issue Areas in our Federal Bill Tracker to refine your search for relevant legislation.
You can view all soil health bills on our Tracker, and sign up to get Bill Tracker updates directly to your inbox here.
GCSA Update: Land Core Submits Comments to USDA
On Friday, Land Core submitted comments to USDA, in response to its Request for Information regarding the Greenhouse Gas Technical Assistance Provider and Third-Party Verifier Program, built upon the Growing Climate Solutions Act (GCSA), which passed into law in 2022. Our comments continue our work to establish new economic and market-based incentives for producers, while encouraging USDA to look at a wider ecosystem services and soil health approach, rather than a narrow “carbon-only” metric. We also guide USDA to support producers by ensuring technical assistance providers have a deep understanding of agroecology and biology. Read our full comments here.
Get Involved: FSA Accepting Nominations for County Committees
The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) recently opened their nomination period for county committees. These committees allow farmers and ranchers to provide local input and administration of FSA farm programs in their counties. This is a great way to get involved in decision making at the local level. More information can be found here, and you can request a nomination form online or in-person at your local FSA county office.
Upcoming Events & Funding Opportunities
Below you will find a selection of upcoming gatherings related to agriculture and soil health on our radar, as well as upcoming enrollments and deadlines for funding opportunities.
July 17-18, 2024 - Agricultural Credit Conference - Pierre, SD
The Agricultural Credit Conference, hosted by the South Dakota Bankers Association, primarily caters to agricultural bankers and lenders. It is a great opportunity for those in the industry to learn new information and receive training to better service customers. More information can be found here.
July 21-24, 2024 - Soil and Water Conservation Society Annual Conference - Myrtle Beach, SC
The theme of the 79th annual Soil and Water Conservation Society’s annual conference is “Rising Together: Collaborative Conservation for All.” This conference brings together farmers, researchers, industry professionals, and members of academia to discuss conservation for land, water, and other natural resources. More information can be found here.
July 22-25, 2024 - Western Regional Cooperative Soil Survey Conference - Missoula, MT
The theme of this conference is “Soilscapes to Landscapes: Focused Conservation for Reinvigorating Healthy Communities” and will feature presentations and research discussions by state soil scientists and conservationists. Information and registration can be found here.
Funding Opportunity - Enhancing Agricultural Opportunities for Military Veterans Program
The AgVets grant program, which provides awards to nonprofits in the range of $100,000-$250,000, seeks to increase the number of veterans with successful careers in the food and agricultural sector by providing them with the knowledge and skills they need through comprehensive and hands-on training programs.
The deadline to apply is Thursday, July 11. More information on the program and how to apply can be found here.
What We're Reading
Black Farmers Share Their Legacies
Farmers Stress Value of Teaching Black Youths About Agriculture.
June 19, 2024 | By: Chris Clayton, DTN/Progressive Farmer
Ahold Delhaize, owner of Food Lion, Giant Food and Stop & Shop, is teaming with the snacking giant and grain cooperative Bartlett to reduce emissions from field to shelf.
June 18, 2024 | By: Sarah Zimmerman, Agriculture Dive
Survey shows farmers want conservation funding in farm bill
A new Farm Journal poll conducted on behalf of Invest in Our Land in 10 agricultural states shows U.S. farmers and ranchers believe conservation funding has an important role to play in building their operations’ resilience to increasingly extreme weather and addressing the effects of climate change.
June 13, 2024 | By: The Packer
Without a clear understanding of the financial implications, farmers may hesitate to adopt conservation practices despite their potential environmental and economic benefits. To fill this gap, Congress should…create a National Center for Conservation Economics in the next farm bill to provide farmers across the country with access to critical financial information about conservation investments.
June 12, 2024 | By: Kristin Duncanson, AgriPulse
A little bit of dirt is surprisingly good for your health
Scientists have long known that a little dirt can be good for you. Research has suggested that people who grow up on farms, for instance, have lower rates of Crohn’s disease, asthma and allergies, likely because of their exposure to a diverse array of microbes.
June 11, 2024 | By: Holly Burns, The San Diego Union-Tribune
Rewarding farmers for regenerative agriculture is ‘critical for decarbonising the food sector’
With half of food system emissions down to agricultural production and land-use change in corporate value chains, food brands have an outsized role in food system transformation.
June 10, 2024 | By: Catherine Early, Reuters
A Win for Growers Who Protect Biodiversity on Agricultural Land
By mapping wildlife and endangered plant species on agricultural land, growers are empowered to make adjustments that don’t impede their productivity.
June 6, 2024 | By: Jennifer Cole, Modern Farmer
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