NATURAL
RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
AUTHORIZATION:
Soil
Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936, Public Law 74-46,
as amended; Great Plains Act of 1956, Public Law 84-1021; Public
Law 86-793; Public Law 91-118; Public Law 96-263; Public Law 101-624.
To
conserve and develop the Great Plains soil and water resources by
providing technical and financial assistance to farmers, ranchers,
and others in planning and implementing conservation practices.
TYPES
OF ASSISTANCE:
Direct Payments for Specified Use. Place Cursor Here for Definition
Advisory Services and Counseling. Place Cursor Here for Definition
USES
AND USE RESTRICTIONS:
Cost-share
funds are available for many of the soil and water conservation
measures determined to be needed to protect and stabilize a farm
or ranch unit against climatic and erosion hazards of the Great
Plains area, and applied in accordance with a conservation plan
for the entire operating unit. Additional practices may be included
in the plan for agriculture-related pollution abatement, enhancement
of fish, wildlife, recreational resources, and promotion of economic
use of land and may or may not be cost-shared.
ELIGIBILITY
REQUIREMENTS:
Applicant
Eligibility: Applicants must have control of
the land for the period of the contract running from a minimum of
3 years to a maximum of 10 years. Applicants must be in compliance
with Title XIV, Subtitles A and B of Public Law 101-624. Land must
be located in one of 556 designated counties within the States of
Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma,
South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming.
Beneficiary
Eligibility: Applicant must have control of
the land for the period of the contract running from a minimum
of 3 years to a maximum of 10 years.
Credentials/Documentation:
Evidence that applicant has control over land to be entered into
contract or will develop an adequate plan of farming operation
that incorporates needed soil and water
Pre-application
Coordination: None. This program is excluded
from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-102 and E.O. 12372.
Application
Procedure: Application is made to the Natural
Resources Conservation Service district conservationist serving
the county in which the operating unit is located. The application
is submitted on Form SCS-LTP-001, "Application for long-term contracted
assistance through the Great Plains Conservation Program." This
program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-110.
Award
Procedure: Generally, the area conservationist
serving the multi-county area in which the participating county
is located is the contracting officer and is the representative
of the Secretary of Agriculture. The Contracting Officer is responsible
for the technical adequacy of the conservation plan and the legal
sufficiency of the contract.
Deadlines:
None.
Range
of Approval/Disapproval Time: Application
servicing depends on the volume of applications, backlog of pending
applications and priority rating based on severity of resource
problems and NRCS staff assistance available for development of
contracts.
Appeals:
Appeals procedures are available from NRCS field offices, and
are included in each contract.
Renewals:
Not applicable.
SSISTANCE
CONSIDERATIONS:
Formula
and Matching Requirements: Cost-sharing to participant
ranges for specified conservation practices from 80 percent of the
cost for practices with the most public benefit to 50 percent for
practices where the public benefit is less. Other practices may
be required to be installed without cost-share.
Length
and Time Phasing of Assistance: Contract period
runs from a minimum of 3 years to a maximum of 10 years. Obligations
for assistance are tied to a long-term contract detailing the
3 to 10 year schedule in which needed land use changes and conservation
practice installation will be made.
POST
ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Reports:
No reports. NRCS and the landowner or operator make an annual contract
status review that includes maintenance of completed contract items,
need for deletion or addition of contract items, etc.
Audits:
NRCS makes periodic random on site reviews of the quality and
quantity of the application and maintenance of contract items.
Records:
None.
FINANCIAL
INFORMATION:
Account
Identification: 12-2268-0-1-302.
Obligations:
(From carryover funds): (Grants) FY 01 $531,613; FY 02 est $400,144;
and FY 03 est $0. (Salaries and expenses) FY 01 $1,505,007; FY
02 est $432,000; and FY 03 est $0.
Range
and Average of Financial Assistance:
Up to $35,000 per farm operating unit over a contract period
running from 3 to 10 years.
At the end of FY 2001, there were 930 remaining active contracts
with cost share practices valued in excess of $10,794,000 remaining
to be implemented on over 3,906,000 acres. This program is operated
in 556 counties in 10 States.
REGULATIONS,
GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE:
"The
Great Plains Conservation Program" PA-1317 "What the Natural Resources
Conservation Service Does," SCS-CI-3; 7 CFR 631, regulations in
Federal Register Vol. 49, No. 59, page 11141, March 26, 1984.
INFORMATION
CONTACTS:
Regional
or Local Office: State conservationists for
the Natural Resources Conservation Service in the 10 Great Plains
States where the program operates (Montana, North Dakota, South
Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma,
and Texas). See Appendix IV of the Catalog for addresses of district
conservationists, NRCS, in the 556 counties where the program operates.
Headquarters
Office: Deputy Chief, National Resources Conservation
Programs, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Department of
Agriculture, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, DC 20013. Telephone: (202)
720-1873. Use the same number for FTS.
