Budget Package Leaves Agriculture, Nature Behind
Continuing resolution extends Farm Bill but leaves out critical funding for conservation
Media Contacts
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Eric Bontrager
Associate Director of Communications, North American Climate Policy
The Nature Conservancy
Phone: 703-887-0559
Email: eric.bontrager@tnc.org
Congress cleared a budget package today that includes a one-year extension of the federal Farm Bill. However, the package does not include billions of dollars Congress already appropriated for implementing agricultural conservation practices, jeopardizing the future of this critical funding.
The measure to fund the government through March 14, 2025 also extends the Farm Bill to Sept. 30, 2025. It also includes more than $110 billion in emergency aid for disaster survivors and farmers. What’s missing, despite bipartisan support from Senate and House committee leaders, is the transfer of more than $14 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act to the Farm Bill that would have ensured funding to meet farmer and rancher demand for voluntary conservation programs.
That funding would have gone to programs, such as the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, to help farmers implement voluntary conservation and climate-smart practices on their lands. For example, steps to prevent soil erosion, improve grazing management and reduce the risk of loss to drought and flooding.
The following is a statement by Kameran Onley, managing director of North American Policy and Government Relations at The Nature Conservancy:
“Today’s budget deal is a missed opportunity for agriculture, nature and America’s rural communities. While we are glad lawmakers reached a budget deal and extended the Farm Bill, the failure to include this already approved funding will mean producers must scramble for resources to keep their operations viable and resilient. Leaving money on the table is an unforced error, with producers and nature left to face the consequences.
“Farmers, ranchers and forest landowners are the best stewards of working lands. These conservation programs help support that work, leading to better outcomes both for farming operations and nature. Demand for voluntary conservation programs to support working lands already far exceeds available funding, which is why Congress included these resources in the Inflation Reduction Act.
“Shifting the fate of this desperately needed funding to the next Congress creates uncertainty as to whether farmers will be able to counter threats like droughts, floods and loss of wildlife. We strongly urge lawmakers to carry the bipartisan support for preserving this funding to next year’s Farm Bill negotiations.”
The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. The Nature Conservancy is working to make a lasting difference around the world in 81 countries and territories (40 by direct conservation impact and 41 through partners) through a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. To learn more, visit nature.org or follow @nature_press on X.
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