Natural Resources conservation
service Cost-share Programs
Helping People Help The Land
USDA-Natural Resources
Conservation Service
• Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA)
• Environmental Quality Incentives Program
(EQIP)
• Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP)
Conservation
Technical
Assistance
• Voluntary Program
• Available to land owners/operators at no cost.
• Often results in a conservation plan.
Conservation Technical
Assistance
A Conservation plan
includes:
• Producers objectives/goals;
• Aerial photograph of your
operation;
• Soils map and descriptions;
• Resource inventory;
• List of your treatment
decisions;
• Location and schedule for
applying conservation
practices.
EQIP
• EQIP:
– Voluntary program that provides
financial and technical
assistance to agricultural
producers.
• Sign-Up:
– Continuous however, NRCS
establishes application “cut off”
deadline dates for evaluation
and ranking of eligible
applications.
EQIP
• NRCS:
– Works with landowners to
develop contracts and
implement conservation
practices that address
environmental natural
resource problems and
sustain food and fiber.
• Payments:
– Made to producers once
practices are completed
according to NRCS
requirements.
EQIP
• Rates:
– Up to 75% cost-share for
standard contracts and
90% for beginning, limited
resource or socially
disadvantaged farmers and
ranchers.
• Payment limitation:
– $300,000 per individual.
• Contract length:
– Minimum 1 year after
implementation of last
scheduled practice,
Maximum 10yrs
• Sign up:
WHIP
– Continuous
• Purpose:
– Help landowners or
lessees develop and
improve wildlife habitat.
– Protect , restore, develop
or enhance fish and
wildlife habitat.
• Eligible land:
– Tribal land, private
agricultural, state and
federal lands.
WHIP
• Payment Limitation:
– 50,000/person or legal
entity/year.
• Rates:
– Up to 75% cost-share
for standard contracts.
Up to 90% cost-share
for historically
underserved.
– Applications typically
ranked once a year.
Conservation Program
Eligibility
• Limited
to individuals/entities making less
than $1 million/yr average adjusted gross
farm income (AGI).
• Unless 66% or more of the income comes from
farming, ranching or forestry.
• Secretary of Agriculture can waive AGI limit
for projects on environmentally sensitive
land.
Thank you for
your time
522 Main Street
Alfredo Muñoz
Rangeland Management Specialist
alfredo.munoz@tx.usda.gov
Junction, TX 76849
Phone #: (325) 446-2717 x 3
www.tx.nrcs.usda.gov