Title II — Conservation

“(d) Enrollment

“(1) Maximum acreage enrolled—The Secretary may maintain in the conservation reserve at any one time during—

“(A) fiscal year 2014, no more than 27,500,000 acres;

“(B) fiscal year 2015, no more than 26,000,000 acres;

“(C) fiscal year 2016, no more than 25,000,000 acres;

“(D) fiscal year 2017, no more than 24,000,000 acres; and

“(E) fiscal year 2018, no more than 24,000,000 acres.

“(2) Grasslands

“(A) Limitation—For purposes of applying the limitations in paragraph (1), no more than 2,000,000 acres of the land described in subsection (b)(3) may be enrolled in the program at any one time during the 2014 through 2018 fiscal years.

“(B) Priority—In enrolling acres under subparagraph (A), the Secretary may give priority to land with expiring conservation reserve program contracts.

“(C) Method of enrollment—In enrolling acres under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall make the program available to owners or operators of eligible land on a continuous enrollment basis with one or more ranking periods.”

“(2) Special rule for certain land—In the case of land devoted to hardwood trees, shelterbelts, windbreaks, or wildlife corridors under a contract entered into under this subchapter, the owner or operator of the land may, within the limitations prescribed under paragraph (1), specify the duration of the contract.”

“(b) Conservation plans—The plan referred to in subsection (a)(1) shall set forth—

“(1) the conservation measures and practices to be carried out by the owner or operator during the term of the contract; and

“(2) the commercial use, if any, to be permitted on the land during the term.”

“(d) Payment schedule

“(1) In general—Except as otherwise provided in this section, payments under this subchapter shall be made in cash in such amount and on such time schedule as is agreed on and specified in the contract.

“(2) Advance payment—Payments under this subchapter may be made in advance of determination of performance.”

“(g) Final year of contract—The Secretary shall not consider an owner or operator to be in violation of a term or condition of the conservation reserve contract if—

“(1) during the year prior to expiration of the contract, the land is enrolled in the conservation stewardship program; and

“(2) the activity required under the conservation stewardship program pursuant to such enrollment is consistent with this subchapter.

“(h) Land enrolled in agricultural conservation easement program—The Secretary may terminate or modify a contract entered into under this subchapter if eligible land that is subject to such contract is transferred into the agricultural conservation easement program under subtitle H.”

“B Conservation stewardship program

“1238D. Definitions

“In this subchapter:

“(1) Agricultural operation—The term agricultural operation means all eligible land, whether or not contiguous, that is—

“(A) under the effective control of a producer at the time the producer enters into a contract under the program; and

“(B) operated with equipment, labor, management, and production or cultivation practices that are substantially separate from other agricultural operations, as determined by the Secretary.

“(2) Conservation activities

“(A) In general—The term conservation activities means conservation systems, practices, or management measures.

“(B) Inclusions—The term conservation activities includes—

“(i) structural measures, vegetative measures, and land management measures, including agriculture drainage management systems, as determined by the Secretary; and

“(ii) planning needed to address a priority resource concern.

“(3) Conservation stewardship plan—The term conservation stewardship plan means a plan that—

“(A) identifies and inventories priority resource concerns;

“(B) establishes benchmark data and conservation objectives;

“(C) describes conservation activities to be implemented, managed, or improved; and

“(D) includes a schedule and evaluation plan for the planning, installation, and management of the new and existing conservation activities.

“(4) Eligible land

“(A) In general—The term eligible land means—

“(i) private or tribal land on which agricultural commodities, livestock, or forest-related products are produced; and

“(ii) lands associated with the land described in clause (i) on which priority resource concerns could be addressed through a contract under the program.

“(B) Inclusions—The term eligible land includes—

“(i) cropland;

“(ii) grassland;

“(iii) rangeland;

“(iv) pasture land;

“(v) nonindustrial private forest land; and

“(vi) other agricultural areas (including cropped woodland, marshes, and agricultural land used or capable of being used for the production of livestock), as determined by the Secretary.

“(5) Priority resource concern—The term priority resource concern means a natural resource concern or problem, as determined by the Secretary, that—

“(A) is identified at the national, State, or local level as a priority for a particular area of a State;

“(B) represents a significant concern in a State or region; and

“(C) is likely to be addressed successfully through the implementation of conservation activities under this program.

“(6) Program—The term program means the conservation stewardship program established by this subchapter.

“(7) Stewardship threshold—The term stewardship threshold means the level of management required, as determined by the Secretary, to conserve and improve the quality and condition of a natural resource.

“1238E. Conservation stewardship program

“(a) Establishment and purpose—During each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018, the Secretary shall carry out a conservation stewardship program to encourage producers to address priority resource concerns in a comprehensive manner—

“(1) by undertaking additional conservation activities; and

“(2) by improving, maintaining, and managing existing conservation activities.

“(b) Exclusions

“(1) Land enrolled in other conservation programs—Subject to paragraph (2), the following land (even if covered by the definition of eligible land) is not eligible for enrollment in the program:

“(A) Land enrolled in the conservation reserve program, unless—

“(i) the conservation reserve contract will expire at the end of the fiscal year in which the land is to be enrolled in the program; and

“(ii) conservation reserve program payments for land enrolled in the program cease before the first program payment is made to the applicant under this subchapter.

“(B) Land enrolled in a wetland easement through the agricultural conservation easement program.

“(C) Land enrolled in the conservation security program.

“(2) Conversion to cropland—Eligible land used for crop production after October 1, 2013, that had not been planted, considered to be planted, or devoted to crop production for at least 4 of the 6 years preceding that date shall not be the basis for any payment under the program, unless the land does not meet the requirement because—

“(A) the land had previously been enrolled in the conservation reserve program;

“(B) the land has been maintained using long-term crop rotation practices, as determined by the Secretary; or

“(C) the land is incidental land needed for efficient operation of the farm or ranch, as determined by the Secretary.

“1238F. Stewardship contracts

“(a) Submission of contract offers—To be eligible to participate in the conservation stewardship program, a producer shall submit to the Secretary a contract offer for the agricultural operation that—

“(1) demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that the producer, at the time of the contract offer, meets or exceeds the stewardship threshold for at least 2 priority resource concerns; and

“(2) would, at a minimum, meet or exceed the stewardship threshold for at least 1 additional priority resource concern by the end of the stewardship contract by—

“(A) installing and adopting additional conservation activities; and

“(B) improving, maintaining, and managing existing conservation activities across the entire agricultural operation in a manner that increases or extends the conservation benefits in place at the time the contract offer is accepted by the Secretary.

“(b) Evaluation of contract offers

“(1) Ranking of applications—In evaluating contract offers submitted under subsection (a), the Secretary shall rank applications based on—

“(A) the level of conservation treatment on all applicable priority resource concerns at the time of application;

“(B) the degree to which the proposed conservation activities effectively increase conservation performance;

“(C) the number of applicable priority resource concerns proposed to be treated to meet or exceed the stewardship threshold by the end of the contract;

“(D) the extent to which other priority resource concerns will be addressed to meet or exceed the stewardship threshold by the end of the contract period;

“(E) the extent to which the actual and anticipated conservation benefits from the contract are provided at the least cost relative to other similarly beneficial contract offers; and

“(F) the extent to which priority resource concerns will be addressed when transitioning from the conservation reserve program to agricultural production.

“(2) Prohibition—The Secretary may not assign a higher priority to any application because the applicant is willing to accept a lower payment than the applicant would otherwise be eligible to receive.

“(3) Additional criteria—The Secretary may develop and use such additional criteria that the Secretary determines are necessary to ensure that national, State, and local priority resource concerns are effectively addressed.

“(c) Entering into contracts—After a determination that a producer is eligible for the program under subsection (a), and a determination that the contract offer ranks sufficiently high under the evaluation criteria under subsection (b), the Secretary shall enter into a conservation stewardship contract with the producer to enroll the eligible land to be covered by the contract.

“(d) Contract provisions

“(1) Term—A conservation stewardship contract shall be for a term of 5 years.

“(2) Required provisions—The conservation stewardship contract of a producer shall—

“(A) state the amount of the payment the Secretary agrees to make to the producer for each year of the conservation stewardship contract under section 1238G(d);

“(B) require the producer—

“(i) to implement a conservation stewardship plan that describes the program purposes to be achieved through 1 or more conservation activities;

“(ii) to maintain and supply information as required by the Secretary to determine compliance with the conservation stewardship plan and any other requirements of the program; and

“(iii) not to conduct any activities on the agricultural operation that would tend to defeat the purposes of the program;

“(C) permit all economic uses of the eligible land that—

“(i) maintain the agricultural nature of the land; and

“(ii) are consistent with the conservation purposes of the conservation stewardship contract;

“(D) include a provision to ensure that a producer shall not be considered in violation of the contract for failure to comply with the contract due to circumstances beyond the control of the producer, including a disaster or related condition, as determined by the Secretary;

“(E) include provisions requiring that upon the violation of a term or condition of the contract at any time the producer has control of the land—

“(i) if the Secretary determines that the violation warrants termination of the contract—

“(I) the producer shall forfeit all rights to receive payments under the contract; and

“(II) the producer shall refund all or a portion of the payments received by the producer under the contract, including any interest on the payments, as determined by the Secretary; or

“(ii) if the Secretary determines that the violation does not warrant termination of the contract, the producer shall refund or accept adjustments to the payments provided to the producer, as the Secretary determines to be appropriate;

“(F) include provisions in accordance with paragraphs (3) and (4) of this section; and

“(G) include any additional provisions the Secretary determines are necessary to carry out the program.

“(3) Change of interest in land subject to a contract

“(A) In general—At the time of application, a producer shall have control of the eligible land to be enrolled in the program. Except as provided in subparagraph (B), a change in the interest of a producer in eligible land covered by a contract under the program shall result in the termination of the contract with regard to that land.

“(B) Transfer of duties and rights—Subparagraph (A) shall not apply if—

“(i) within a reasonable period of time (as determined by the Secretary) after the date of the change in the interest in eligible land covered by a contract under the program, the transferee of the land provides written notice to the Secretary that all duties and rights under the contract have been transferred to, and assumed by, the transferee for the portion of the land transferred;

“(ii) the transferee meets the eligibility requirements of the program; and

“(iii) the Secretary approves the transfer of all duties and rights under the contract.

“(4) Modification and termination of contracts

“(A) Voluntary modification or termination—The Secretary may modify or terminate a contract with a producer if—

“(i) the producer agrees to the modification or termination; and

“(ii) the Secretary determines that the modification or termination is in the public interest.

“(B) Involuntary termination—The Secretary may terminate a contract if the Secretary determines that the producer violated the contract.

“(5) Repayment—If a contract is terminated, the Secretary may, consistent with the purposes of the program—

“(A) allow the producer to retain payments already received under the contract; or

“(B) require repayment, in whole or in part, of payments received and assess liquidated damages.

“(e) Contract renewal—At the end of the initial 5-year contract period, the Secretary may allow the producer to renew the contract for 1 additional 5-year period if the producer—

“(1) demonstrates compliance with the terms of the initial contract;

“(2) agrees to adopt and continue to integrate conservation activities across the entire agricultural operation, as determined by the Secretary; and

“(3) agrees, by the end of the contract period—

“(A) to meet the stewardship threshold of at least two additional priority resource concerns on the agricultural operation; or

“(B) to exceed the stewardship threshold of two existing priority resource concerns that are specified by the Secretary in the initial contract.

“1238G. Duties of the secretary

“(a) In general—To achieve the conservation goals of a contract under the conservation stewardship program, the Secretary shall—

“(1) make the program available to eligible producers on a continuous enrollment basis with 1 or more ranking periods, one of which shall occur in the first quarter of each fiscal year;

“(2) identify not less than 5 priority resource concerns in a particular watershed or other appropriate region or area within a State; and

“(3) establish a science-based stewardship threshold for each priority resource concern identified under paragraph (2).

“(b) Allocation to states—The Secretary shall allocate acres to States for enrollment, based—

“(1) primarily on each State’s proportion of eligible land to the total acreage of eligible land in all States; and

“(2) also on consideration of—

“(A) the extent and magnitude of the conservation needs associated with agricultural production in each State;

“(B) the degree to which implementation of the program in the State is, or will be, effective in helping producers address those needs; and

“(C) other considerations to achieve equitable geographic distribution of funds, as determined by the Secretary.

“(c) Acreage enrollment limitation—During the period beginning on October 1, 2013, and ending on September 30, 2021, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable—

“(1) enroll in the program an additional 8,695,000 acres for each fiscal year; and

“(2) manage the program to achieve a national average rate of $18 per acre, which shall include the costs of all financial assistance, technical assistance, and any other expenses associated with enrollment or participation in the program.

“(d) Conservation stewardship payments

“(1) Availability of payments—The Secretary shall provide annual payments under the program to compensate the producer for—

“(A) installing and adopting additional conservation activities; and

“(B) improving, maintaining, and managing conservation activities in place at the agricultural operation of the producer at the time the contract offer is accepted by the Secretary.

“(2) Payment amount—The amount of the conservation stewardship annual payment shall be determined by the Secretary and based, to the maximum extent practicable, on the following factors:

“(A) Costs incurred by the producer associated with planning, design, materials, installation, labor, management, maintenance, or training.

“(B) Income forgone by the producer.

“(C) Expected conservation benefits.

“(D) The extent to which priority resource concerns will be addressed through the installation and adoption of conservation activities on the agricultural operation.

“(E) The level of stewardship in place at the time of application and maintained over the term of the contract.

“(F) The degree to which the conservation activities will be integrated across the entire agricultural operation for all applicable priority resource concerns over the term of the contract.

“(G) Such other factors as determined appropriate by the Secretary.

“(3) Exclusions—A payment to a producer under this subsection shall not be provided for—

“(A) the design, construction, or maintenance of animal waste storage or treatment facilities or associated waste transport or transfer devices for animal feeding operations; or

“(B) conservation activities for which there is no cost incurred or income forgone to the producer.

“(4) Delivery of payments—In making payments under this subsection, the Secretary shall, to the extent practicable—

“(A) prorate conservation performance over the term of the contract so as to accommodate, to the extent practicable, producers earning equal annual payments in each fiscal year; and

“(B) make payments as soon as practicable after October 1 of each fiscal year for activities carried out in the previous fiscal year.

“(e) Supplemental payments for resource-conserving crop rotations

“(1) Availability of payments—The Secretary shall provide additional payments to producers that, in participating in the program, agree to adopt or improve resource-conserving crop rotations to achieve beneficial crop rotations as appropriate for the eligible land of the producers.

“(2) Beneficial crop rotations—The Secretary shall determine whether a resource-conserving crop rotation is a beneficial crop rotation eligible for additional payments under paragraph (1) based on whether the resource-conserving crop rotation is designed to provide natural resource conservation and production benefits.

“(3) Eligibility—To be eligible to receive a payment described in paragraph (1), a producer shall agree to adopt and maintain beneficial resource-conserving crop rotations for the term of the contract.

“(4) Resource-conserving crop rotation—In this subsection, the term resource-conserving crop rotation means a crop rotation that—

“(A) includes at least 1 resource conserving crop (as defined by the Secretary);

“(B) reduces erosion;

“(C) improves soil fertility and tilth;

“(D) interrupts pest cycles; and

“(E) in applicable areas, reduces depletion of soil moisture or otherwise reduces the need for irrigation.

“(f) Payment limitations—A person or legal entity may not receive, directly or indirectly, payments under the program that, in the aggregate, exceed $200,000 under all contracts entered into during fiscal years 2014 through 2018, excluding funding arrangements with Indian tribes, regardless of the number of contracts entered into under the program by the person or legal entity.

“(g) Specialty crop and organic producers—The Secretary shall ensure that outreach and technical assistance are available, and program specifications are appropriate to enable specialty crop and organic producers to participate in the program.

“(h) Coordination with organic certification—The Secretary shall establish a transparent means by which producers may initiate organic certification under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.) while participating in a contract under the program.

“(i) Regulations—The Secretary shall promulgate regulations that—

“(1) prescribe such other rules as the Secretary determines to be necessary to ensure a fair and reasonable application of the limitations established under subsection (f); and

“(2) otherwise enable the Secretary to carry out the program.”

“(2) Term—A contract under the program shall have a term that does not exceed 10 years.”

“(f) Allocation of funding

“(1) Livestock—For each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018, at least 60 percent of the funds made available for payments under the program shall be targeted at practices relating to livestock production.

“(2) Wildlife habitat—For each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018, 5 percent of the funds made available for payments under the program shall be targeted at practices benefitting wildlife habitat.”

“(j) Wildlife habitat incentive practice—The Secretary shall provide payments to producers under the program for practices, including recurring practices for the term of the contract, that support the restoration, development, protection, and improvement of wildlife habitat on eligible land, including—

“(1) upland wildlife habitat;

“(2) wetland wildlife habitat;

“(3) habitat for threatened and endangered species;

“(4) fish habitat;

“(5) habitat on pivot corners and other irregular areas of a field; and

“(6) other types of wildlife habitat, as determined appropriate by the Secretary.”

“(b) Reporting—Not later than December 31, 2014, and every two years thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate and the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives a report on the status of projects funded under this section, including—

“(1) funding awarded;

“(2) project results; and

“(3) incorporation of project findings, such as new technology and innovative approaches, into the conservation efforts implemented by the Secretary.”

“H Agricultural Conservation Easement Program

“1265. Establishment and purposes

“(a) Establishment—The Secretary shall establish an agricultural conservation easement program for the conservation of eligible land and natural resources through easements or other interests in land.

“(b) Purposes—The purposes of the program are to—

“(1) combine the purposes and coordinate the functions of the wetlands reserve program established under section 1237, the grassland reserve program established under section 1238N, and the farmland protection program established under section 1238I, as such sections were in effect on September 30, 2013;

“(2) restore, protect, and enhance wetlands on eligible land;

“(3) protect the agricultural use and related conservation values of eligible land by limiting nonagricultural uses of that land; and

“(4) protect grazing uses and related conservation values by restoring and conserving eligible land.

“1265A. Definitions

“In this subtitle:

“(1) Agricultural land easement—The term agricultural land easement means an easement or other interest in eligible land that—

“(A) is conveyed for the purpose of protecting natural resources and the agricultural nature of the land; and

“(B) permits the landowner the right to continue agricultural production and related uses subject to an agricultural land easement plan, as approved by the Secretary.

“(2) Eligible entity—The term eligible entity means—

“(A) an agency of State or local government or an Indian tribe (including a farmland protection board or land resource council established under State law); or

“(B) an organization that is—

“(i) organized for, and at all times since the formation of the organization has been operated principally for, 1 or more of the conservation purposes specified in clause (i), (ii), (iii), or (iv) of section 170(h)(4)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;

“(ii) an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of that Code that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of that Code; or

“(iii) described in—

“(I) paragraph (1) or (2) of section 509(a) of that Code; or

“(II) section 509(a)(3) of that Code and is controlled by an organization described in section 509(a)(2) of that Code.

“(3) Eligible land—The term eligible land means private or tribal land that is—

“(A) in the case of an agricultural land easement, agricultural land, including land on a farm or ranch—

“(i) that is subject to a pending offer for purchase of an agricultural land easement from an eligible entity;

“(ii) that—

“(I) has prime, unique, or other productive soil;

“(II) contains historical or archaeological resources; or

“(III) the protection of which will further a State or local policy consistent with the purposes of the program; and

“(iii) that is—

“(I) cropland;

“(II) rangeland;

“(III) grassland or land that contains forbs, or shrubland for which grazing is the predominate use;

“(IV) pastureland; or

“(V) nonindustrial private forest land that contributes to the economic viability of an offered parcel or serves as a buffer to protect such land from development;

“(B) in the case of a wetland easement, a wetland or related area, including—

“(i) farmed or converted wetlands, together with adjacent land that is functionally dependent on that land, if the Secretary determines it—

“(I) is likely to be successfully restored in a cost effective manner; and

“(II) will maximize the wildlife benefits and wetland functions and values, as determined by the Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior at the local level;

“(ii) cropland or grassland that was used for agricultural production prior to flooding from the natural overflow of—

“(I) a closed basin lake and adjacent land that is functionally dependent upon it, if the State or other entity is willing to provide 50 percent share of the cost of an easement;

“(II) a pothole and adjacent land that is functionally dependent on it;

“(iii) farmed wetlands and adjoining lands that—

“(I) are enrolled in the conservation reserve program;

“(II) have the highest wetland functions and values, as determined by the Secretary; and

“(III) are likely to return to production after they leave the conservation reserve program;

“(iv) riparian areas that link wetlands that are protected by easements or some other device that achieves the same purpose as an easement; or

“(v) other wetlands of an owner that would not otherwise be eligible, if the Secretary determines that the inclusion of such wetlands in a wetland easement would significantly add to the functional value of the easement; or

“(C) in the case of either an agricultural land easement or wetland easement, other land that is incidental to land described in subparagraph (A) or (B), if the Secretary determines that it is necessary for the efficient administration of the easements under this program.

“(4) Program—The term program means the agricultural conservation easement program established by this subtitle.

“(5) Wetland easement—The term wetland easement means a reserved interest in eligible land that—

“(A) is defined and delineated in a deed; and

“(B) stipulates—

“(i) the rights, title, and interests in land conveyed to the Secretary; and

“(ii) the rights, title, and interests in land that are reserved to the landowner.

“1265B. Agricultural land easements

“(a) Availability of assistance—The Secretary shall facilitate and provide funding for—

“(1) the purchase by eligible entities of agricultural land easements and other interests in eligible land; and

“(2) technical assistance to provide for the conservation of natural resources pursuant to an agricultural land easement plan.

“(b) Cost-share assistance

“(1) In general—The Secretary shall protect the agricultural use, including grazing, and related conservation values of eligible land through cost-share assistance to eligible entities for purchasing agricultural land easements.

“(2) Scope of assistance available

“(A) Federal share—An agreement described in paragraph (4) shall provide for a Federal share determined by the Secretary of an amount not to exceed 50 percent of the fair market value of the agricultural land easement or other interest in land, as determined by the Secretary using—

“(i) the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice;

“(ii) an area-wide market analysis or survey; or

“(iii) another industry-approved method.

“(B) Non-federal share

“(i) In general—Under the agreement, the eligible entity shall provide a share that is at least equivalent to that provided by the Secretary.

“(ii) Source of contribution—An eligible entity may include as part of its share a charitable donation or qualified conservation contribution (as defined by section 170(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) from the private landowner if the eligible entity contributes its own cash resources in an amount that is at least 50 percent of the amount contributed by the Secretary.

“(C) Exception—In the case of grassland of special environmental significance, as determined by the Secretary, the Secretary may provide an amount not to exceed 75 percent of the fair market value of the agricultural land easement.

“(3) Evaluation and ranking of applications

“(A) Criteria—The Secretary shall establish evaluation and ranking criteria to maximize the benefit of Federal investment under the program.

“(B) Considerations—In establishing the criteria, the Secretary shall emphasize support for—

“(i) protecting agricultural uses and related conservation values of the land; and

“(ii) maximizing the protection of areas devoted to agricultural use.

“(C) Bidding down—If the Secretary determines that 2 or more applications for cost-share assistance are comparable in achieving the purpose of the program, the Secretary shall not assign a higher priority to any of those applications solely on the basis of lesser cost to the program.

“(4) Agreements with eligible entities

“(A) In general—The Secretary shall enter into agreements with eligible entities to stipulate the terms and conditions under which the eligible entity is permitted to use cost-share assistance provided under this section.

“(B) Length of agreements—An agreement shall be for a term that is—

“(i) in the case of an eligible entity certified under the process described in paragraph (5), a minimum of five years; and

“(ii) for all other eligible entities, at least three, but not more than five years.

“(C) Minimum terms and conditions—An eligible entity shall be authorized to use its own terms and conditions for agricultural land easements so long as the Secretary determines such terms and conditions—

“(i) are consistent with the purposes of the program;

“(ii) permit effective enforcement of the conservation purposes of such easements;

“(iii) include a right of enforcement for the Secretary, that may be used only if the terms of the easement are not enforced by the holder of the easement;

“(iv) subject the land in which an interest is purchased to an agricultural land easement plan that—

“(I) describes the activities which promote the long-term viability of the land to meet the purposes for which the easement was acquired;

“(II) requires the management of grasslands according to a grasslands management plan; and

“(III) includes a conservation plan, where appropriate, and requires, at the option of the Secretary, the conversion of highly erodible cropland to less intensive uses; and

“(v) include a limit on the impervious surfaces to be allowed that is consistent with the agricultural activities to be conducted.

“(D) Substitution of qualified projects—An agreement shall allow, upon mutual agreement of the parties, substitution of qualified projects that are identified at the time of the proposed substitution.

“(E) Effect of violation—If a violation occurs of a term or condition of an agreement under this subsection—

“(i) the Secretary may terminate the agreement; and

“(ii) the Secretary may require the eligible entity to refund all or part of any payments received by the entity under the program, with interest on the payments as determined appropriate by the Secretary.

“(5) Certification of eligible entities

“(A) Certification process—The Secretary shall establish a process under which the Secretary may—

“(i) directly certify eligible entities that meet established criteria;

“(ii) enter into long-term agreements with certified eligible entities; and

“(iii) accept proposals for cost-share assistance for the purchase of agricultural land easements throughout the duration of such agreements.

“(B) Certification criteria—In order to be certified, an eligible entity shall demonstrate to the Secretary that the entity will maintain, at a minimum, for the duration of the agreement—

“(i) a plan for administering easements that is consistent with the purpose of this subtitle;

“(ii) the capacity and resources to monitor and enforce agricultural land easements; and

“(iii) policies and procedures to ensure—

“(I) the long-term integrity of agricultural land easements on eligible land;

“(II) timely completion of acquisitions of such easements; and

“(III) timely and complete evaluation and reporting to the Secretary on the use of funds provided under the program.

“(C) Review and revision

“(i) Review—The Secretary shall conduct a review of eligible entities certified under subparagraph (A) every three years to ensure that such entities are meeting the criteria established under subparagraph (B).

“(ii) Revocation—If the Secretary finds that the certified eligible entity no longer meets the criteria established under subparagraph (B), the Secretary may—

“(I) allow the certified eligible entity a specified period of time, at a minimum 180 days, in which to take such actions as may be necessary to meet the criteria; and

“(II) revoke the certification of the eligible entity, if after the specified period of time, the certified eligible entity does not meet such criteria.

“(c) Method of enrollment—The Secretary shall enroll eligible land under this section through the use of—

“(1) permanent easements; or

“(2) easements for the maximum duration allowed under applicable State laws.

“(d) Technical assistance—The Secretary may provide technical assistance, if requested, to assist in—

“(1) compliance with the terms and conditions of easements; and

“(2) implementation of an agricultural land easement plan.

“1265C. Wetland easements

“(a) Availability of assistance—The Secretary shall provide assistance to owners of eligible land to restore, protect, and enhance wetlands through—

“(1) wetland easements and related wetland easement plans; and

“(2) technical assistance.

“(b) Easements

“(1) Method of enrollment—The Secretary shall enroll eligible land under this section through the use of—

“(A) 30-year easements;

“(B) permanent easements;

“(C) easements for the maximum duration allowed under applicable State laws; or

“(D) as an option for Indian tribes only, 30-year contracts (which shall be considered to be 30-year easements for the purposes of this subtitle).

“(2) Limitations

“(A) Ineligible land—The Secretary may not acquire easements on—

“(i) land established to trees under the conservation reserve program, except in cases where the Secretary determines it would further the purposes of the program; and

“(ii) farmed wetlands or converted wetlands where the conversion was not commenced prior to December 23, 1985.

“(B) Changes in ownership—No wetland easement shall be created on land that has changed ownership during the preceding 24-month period unless—

“(i) the new ownership was acquired by will or succession as a result of the death of the previous owner;

“(ii)

“(I) the ownership change occurred because of foreclosure on the land; and

“(II) immediately before the foreclosure, the owner of the land exercises a right of redemption from the mortgage holder in accordance with State law; or

“(iii) the Secretary determines that the land was acquired under circumstances that give adequate assurances that such land was not acquired for the purposes of placing it in the program.

“(3) Evaluation and ranking of offers

“(A) Criteria—The Secretary shall establish evaluation and ranking criteria to maximize the benefit of Federal investment under the program.

“(B) Considerations—When evaluating offers from landowners, the Secretary may consider—

“(i) the conservation benefits of obtaining a wetland easement, including the potential environmental benefits if the land was removed from agricultural production;

“(ii) the cost-effectiveness of each wetland easement, so as to maximize the environmental benefits per dollar expended;

“(iii) whether the landowner or another person is offering to contribute financially to the cost of the wetland easement to leverage Federal funds; and

“(iv) such other factors as the Secretary determines are necessary to carry out the purposes of the program.

“(C) Priority—The Secretary shall place priority on acquiring wetland easements based on the value of the wetland easement for protecting and enhancing habitat for migratory birds and other wildlife.

“(4) Agreement—To be eligible to place eligible land into the program through a wetland easement, the owner of such land shall enter into an agreement with the Secretary to—

“(A) grant an easement on such land to the Secretary;

“(B) authorize the implementation of a wetland easement plan developed for the eligible land under subsection (f);

“(C) create and record an appropriate deed restriction in accordance with applicable State law to reflect the easement agreed to;

“(D) provide a written statement of consent to such easement signed by those holding a security interest in the land;

“(E) comply with the terms and conditions of the easement and any related agreements; and

“(F) permanently retire any existing base history for the land on which the easement has been obtained.

“(5) Terms and conditions of easement

“(A) In general—A wetland easement shall include terms and conditions that—

“(i) permit—

“(I) repairs, improvements, and inspections on the land that are necessary to maintain existing public drainage systems; and

“(II) owners to control public access on the easement areas while identifying access routes to be used for restoration activities and management and easement monitoring;

“(ii) prohibit—

“(I) the alteration of wildlife habitat and other natural features of such land, unless specifically authorized by the Secretary;

“(II) the spraying of such land with chemicals or the mowing of such land, except where such spraying or mowing is authorized by the Secretary or is necessary—

“(aa) to comply with Federal or State noxious weed control laws;

“(bb) to comply with a Federal or State emergency pest treatment program; or

“(cc) to meet habitat needs of specific wildlife species;

“(III) any activities to be carried out on the owner’s or successor’s land that is immediately adjacent to, and functionally related to, the land that is subject to the easement if such activities will alter, degrade, or otherwise diminish the functional value of the eligible land; and

“(IV) the adoption of any other practice that would tend to defeat the purposes of the program, as determined by the Secretary;

“(iii) provide for the efficient and effective establishment of wildlife functions and values; and

“(iv) include such additional provisions as the Secretary determines are desirable to carry out the program or facilitate the practical administration thereof.

“(B) Violation—On the violation of the terms or conditions of a wetland easement, the wetland easement shall remain in force and the Secretary may require the owner to refund all or part of any payments received by the owner under the program, together with interest thereon as determined appropriate by the Secretary.

“(C) Compatible uses—Land subject to a wetland easement may be used for compatible economic uses, including such activities as hunting and fishing, managed timber harvest, or periodic haying or grazing, if such use is specifically permitted by the wetland easement plan developed for the land under subsection (f) and is consistent with the long-term protection and enhancement of the wetland resources for which the easement was established.

“(D) Reservation of grazing rights—The Secretary may include in the terms and conditions of a wetland easement a provision under which the owner reserves grazing rights if—

“(i) the Secretary determines that the reservation and use of the grazing rights—

“(I) is compatible with the land subject to the easement;

“(II) is consistent with the historical natural uses of the land and the long-term protection and enhancement goals for which the easement was established; and

“(III) complies with the wetland easement plan developed for the land under subsection (f); and

“(ii) the agreement provides for a commensurate reduction in the easement payment to account for the grazing value, as determined by the Secretary.

“(6) Compensation

“(A) Determination

“(i) Permanent easements—The Secretary shall pay as compensation for a permanent wetland easement acquired under the program an amount necessary to encourage enrollment in the program, based on the lowest of—

“(I) the fair market value of the land, as determined by the Secretary, using the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice or an area-wide market analysis or survey;

“(II) the amount corresponding to a geographical cap, as determined by the Secretary in regulations; or

“(III) the offer made by the landowner.

“(ii) 30-year easements—Compensation for a 30-year wetland easement shall be not less than 50 percent, but not more than 75 percent, of the compensation that would be paid for a permanent wetland easement.

“(B) Form of payment—Compensation for a wetland easement shall be provided by the Secretary in the form of a cash payment, in an amount determined under subparagraph (A).

“(C) Payment schedule

“(i) Easements valued at $500,000 or less—For wetland easements valued at $500,000 or less, the Secretary may provide easement payments in not more than 10 annual payments.

“(ii) Easements valued at more than $500,000—For wetland easements valued at more than $500,000, the Secretary may provide easement payments in at least 5, but not more than 10 annual payments, except that, if the Secretary determines it would further the purposes of the program, the Secretary may make a lump sum payment for such an easement.

“(c) Easement restoration

“(1) In general—The Secretary shall provide financial assistance to owners of eligible land to carry out the establishment of conservation measures and practices and protect wetland functions and values, including necessary maintenance activities, as set forth in a wetland easement plan developed for the eligible land under subsection (f).

“(2) Payments—The Secretary shall—

“(A) in the case of a permanent wetland easement, pay an amount that is not less than 75 percent, but not more than 100 percent, of the eligible costs, as determined by the Secretary; and

“(B) in the case of a 30-year wetland easement, pay an amount that is not less than 50 percent, but not more than 75 percent, of the eligible costs, as determined by the Secretary.

“(d) Technical assistance

“(1) In general—The Secretary shall assist owners in complying with the terms and conditions of wetland easements.

“(2) Contracts or agreements—The Secretary may enter into 1 or more contracts with private entities or agreements with a State, non-governmental organization, or Indian tribe to carry out necessary restoration, enhancement, or maintenance of a wetland easement if the Secretary determines that the contract or agreement will advance the purposes of the program.

“(e) Wetland enhancement option—The Secretary may enter into 1 or more agreements with a State (including a political subdivision or agency of a State), nongovernmental organization, or Indian tribe to carry out a special wetland enhancement option that the Secretary determines would advance the purposes of program.

“(f) Administration

“(1) Wetland easement plan—The Secretary shall develop a wetland easement plan for eligible lands subject to a wetland easement, which shall include practices and activities necessary to restore, protect, enhance, and maintain the enrolled lands.

“(2) Delegation of easement administration—The Secretary may delegate—

“(A) any of the easement management, monitoring, and enforcement responsibilities of the Secretary to other Federal or State agencies that have the appropriate authority, expertise, and resources necessary to carry out such delegated responsibilities; and

“(B) any of the easement management responsibilities of the Secretary to other conservation organizations if the Secretary determines the organization has the appropriate expertise and resources.

“(3) Payments

“(A) Timing of payments—The Secretary shall provide payment for obligations incurred by the Secretary under this section—

“(i) with respect to any easement restoration obligation under subsection (c), as soon as possible after the obligation is incurred; and

“(ii) with respect to any annual easement payment obligation incurred by the Secretary, as soon as possible after October 1 of each calendar year.

“(B) Payments to others—If an owner who is entitled to a payment under this section dies, becomes incompetent, is otherwise unable to receive such payment, or is succeeded by another person or entity who renders or completes the required performance, the Secretary shall make such payment, in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary and without regard to any other provision of law, in such manner as the Secretary determines is fair and reasonable in light of all of the circumstances.

“1265D. Administration

“(a) Ineligible land—The Secretary may not use program funds for the purposes of acquiring an easement on—

“(1) lands owned by an agency of the United States, other than land held in trust for Indian tribes;

“(2) lands owned in fee title by a State, including an agency or a subdivision of a State, or a unit of local government;

“(3) land subject to an easement or deed restriction which, as determined by the Secretary, provides similar protection as would be provided by enrollment in the program; or

“(4) lands where the purposes of the program would be undermined due to on-site or off-site conditions, such as risk of hazardous substances, proposed or existing rights of way, infrastructure development, or adjacent land uses.

“(b) Priority—In evaluating applications under the program, the Secretary may give priority to land that is currently enrolled in the conservation reserve program in a contract that is set to expire within 1 year and—

“(1) in the case of an agricultural land easement, is grassland that would benefit from protection under a long-term easement; and

“(2) in the case of a wetland easement, is a wetland or related area with the highest functions and value and is likely to return to production after the land leaves the conservation reserve program.

“(c) Subordination, exchange, modification, and termination

“(1) In general—The Secretary may subordinate, exchange, modify, or terminate any interest in land, or portion of such interest, administered by the Secretary, either directly or on behalf of the Commodity Credit Corporation under the program if the Secretary determines that—

“(A) it is in the Federal Government’s interest to subordinate, exchange, modify, or terminate the interest in land;

“(B) the subordination, exchange, modification, or termination action—

“(i) will address a compelling public need for which there is no practicable alternative; or

“(ii) such action will further the practical administration of the program; and

“(C) the subordination, exchange, modification, or termination action will result in comparable conservation value and equivalent or greater economic value to the United States.

“(2) Consultation—The Secretary shall work with the owner, and eligible entity if applicable, to address any subordination, exchange, modification, or termination of the interest, or portion of such interest, in land.

“(3) Notice—At least 90 days before taking any termination action described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide written notice of such action to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate.

“(d) Land enrolled in conservation reserve program—The Secretary may terminate or modify a contract entered into under section 1231(a) if eligible land that is subject to such contract is transferred into the program.

“(e) Allocation of funds for agricultural land easements—Of the funds made available under section 1241 to carry out the program for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall, to the extent practicable, use for agricultural land easements—

“(1) no less than 40 percent in each of fiscal years 2014 through 2017; and

“(2) no less than 50 percent in fiscal year 2018.”

“I Regional Conservation Partnership Program

“1271. Establishment and purposes

“(a) Establishment—The Secretary shall establish a regional conservation partnership program to implement eligible activities on eligible land through—

“(1) partnership agreements with eligible partners; and

“(2) contracts with producers.

“(b) Purposes—The purposes of the program are as follows:

“(1) To use covered programs to accomplish purposes and functions similar to those of the following programs, as in effect on September 30, 2013:

“(A) The agricultural water enhancement program established under section 1240I.

“(B) The Chesapeake Bay watershed program established under section 1240Q.

“(C) The cooperative conservation partnership initiative established under section 1243.

“(D) The Great Lakes basin program for soil erosion and sediment control established under section 1240P.

“(2) To further the conservation, restoration, and sustainable use of soil, water, wildlife, and related natural resources on eligible land on a regional or watershed scale.

“(3) To encourage eligible partners to cooperate with producers in—

“(A) meeting or avoiding the need for national, State, and local natural resource regulatory requirements related to production on eligible land; and

“(B) implementing projects that will result in the carrying out of eligible activities that affect multiple agricultural or nonindustrial private forest operations on a local, regional, State, or multi-State basis.

“1271A. Definitions

“In this subtitle:

“(1) Covered program—The term covered program means the following:

“(A) The agricultural conservation easement program.

“(B) The environmental quality incentives program.

“(C) The conservation stewardship program.

“(2) Eligible activity—The term eligible activity means any of the following conservation activities:

“(A) Water quality or quantity conservation, restoration, or enhancement projects relating to surface water and groundwater resources, including—

“(i) the conversion of irrigated cropland to the production of less water-intensive agricultural commodities or dryland farming; or

“(ii) irrigation system improvement and irrigation efficiency enhancement.

“(B) Drought mitigation.

“(C) Flood prevention.

“(D) Water retention.

“(E) Air quality improvement.

“(F) Habitat conservation, restoration, and enhancement.

“(G) Erosion control and sediment reduction.

“(H) Other related activities that the Secretary determines will help achieve conservation benefits.

“(3) Eligible land—The term eligible land means land on which agricultural commodities, livestock, or forest-related products are produced, including—

“(A) cropland;

“(B) grassland;

“(C) rangeland;

“(D) pastureland;

“(E) nonindustrial private forest land; and

“(F) other land incidental to agricultural production (including wetlands and riparian buffers) on which significant natural resource issues could be addressed under the program.

“(4) Eligible partner—The term eligible partner means any of the following:

“(A) An agricultural or silvicultural producer association or other group of producers.

“(B) A State or unit of local government.

“(C) An Indian tribe.

“(D) A farmer cooperative.

“(E) A water district, irrigation district, rural water district or association, or other organization with specific water delivery authority to producers on agricultural land.

“(F) An institution of higher education.

“(G) An organization or entity with an established history of working cooperatively with producers on agricultural land, as determined by the Secretary, to address—

“(i) local conservation priorities related to agricultural production, wildlife habitat development, or nonindustrial private forest land management; or

“(ii) critical watershed-scale soil erosion, water quality, sediment reduction, or other natural resource issues.

“(5) Partnership agreement—The term partnership agreement means an agreement entered into under section 1271B between the Secretary and an eligible partner.

“(6) Program—The term program means the regional conservation partnership program established by this subtitle.

“1271B. Regional conservation partnerships

“(a) Partnership agreements authorized—The Secretary may enter into a partnership agreement with an eligible partner to implement a project that will assist producers with installing and maintaining an eligible activity on eligible land.

“(b) Length—A partnership agreement shall be for a period not to exceed 5 years, except that the Secretary may extend the agreement one time for up to 12 months when an extension is necessary to meet the objectives of the program.

“(c) Duties of partners

“(1) In general—Under a partnership agreement, the eligible partner shall—

“(A) define the scope of a project, including—

“(i) the eligible activities to be implemented;

“(ii) the potential agricultural or nonindustrial private forest land operations affected;

“(iii) the local, State, multi-State, or other geographic area covered; and

“(iv) the planning, outreach, implementation, and assessment to be conducted;

“(B) conduct outreach to producers for potential participation in the project;

“(C) at the request of a producer, act on behalf of a producer participating in the project in applying for assistance under section 1271C;

“(D) leverage financial or technical assistance provided by the Secretary with additional funds to help achieve the project objectives;

“(E) conduct an assessment of the project’s effects; and

“(F) at the conclusion of the project, report to the Secretary on its results and funds leveraged.

“(2) Contribution—An eligible partner shall provide a significant portion of the overall costs of the scope of the project that is the subject of the agreement entered into under subsection (a), as determined by the Secretary.

“(d) Applications

“(1) Competitive process—The Secretary shall conduct a competitive process to select applications for partnership agreements and may assess and rank applications with similar conservation purposes as a group.

“(2) Criteria used—In carrying out the process described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall make public the criteria used in evaluating applications.

“(3) Content—An application to the Secretary shall include a description of—

“(A) the scope of the project, as described in subsection (c)(1)(A);

“(B) the plan for monitoring, evaluating, and reporting on progress made towards achieving the project’s objectives;

“(C) the program resources requested for the project, including the covered programs to be used and estimated funding needed from the Secretary;

“(D) eligible partners collaborating to achieve project objectives, including their roles, responsibilities, capabilities, and financial contribution; and

“(E) any other elements the Secretary considers necessary to adequately evaluate and competitively select applications for funding under the program.

“(4) Priority to certain applications—The Secretary may give a higher priority to applications that—

“(A) assist producers in meeting or avoiding the need for a natural resource regulatory requirement;

“(B) have a high percentage of eligible producers in the area to be covered by the agreement;

“(C) significantly leverage non-Federal financial and technical resources and coordinate with other local, State, or national efforts;

“(D) deliver high percentages of applied conservation to address conservation priorities or regional, State, or national conservation initiatives;

“(E) provide innovation in conservation methods and delivery, including outcome-based performance measures and methods; or

“(F) meet other factors that are important for achieving the purposes of the program, as determined by the Secretary.

“1271C. Assistance to producers

“(a) In general—The Secretary shall enter into contracts with producers to provide financial and technical assistance to—

“(1) producers participating in a project with an eligible partner, as described in section 1271B; or

“(2) producers that fit within the scope of a project described in section 1271B or a critical conservation area designated under section 1271F, but who are seeking to implement an eligible activity on eligible land independent of a partner.

“(b) Terms and conditions

“(1) Consistency with program rules—Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall ensure that the terms and conditions of a contract under this section are consistent with the applicable rules of the covered programs to be used as part of the project, as described in the application under section 1271B(d)(3)(C).

“(2) Adjustments—Except with respect to statutory program requirements governing appeals, payment limitations, and conservation compliance, the Secretary may adjust the discretionary program rules of a covered program—

“(A) to provide a simplified application and evaluation process; and

“(B) to better reflect unique local circumstances and purposes if the Secretary determines such adjustments are necessary to achieve the purposes of the program.

“(c) Payments

“(1) In general—In accordance with statutory requirements of the covered programs involved, the Secretary may make payments to a producer in an amount determined by the Secretary to be necessary to achieve the purposes of the program.

“(2) Payments to producers in States with water quantity concerns—The Secretary may provide payments to producers participating in a project that addresses water quantity concerns for a period of five years in an amount sufficient to encourage conversion from irrigated farming to dryland farming.

“(3) Waiver authority—To assist in the implementation of the program, the Secretary may waive the applicability of the limitation in section 1001D(b)(2) of this Act for participating producers if the Secretary determines that the waiver is necessary to fulfill the objectives of the program.

“1271D. Funding

“(a) Availability of funds—The Secretary shall use $100,000,000 of the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation for each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018 to carry out the program.

“(b) Duration of availability—Funds made available under subsection (a) shall remain available until expended.

“(c) Additional funding and acres

“(1) In general—In addition to the funds made available under subsection (a), the Secretary shall reserve 6 percent of the funds and acres made available for a covered program for each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018 in order to ensure additional resources are available to carry out this program.

“(2) Unused funds and acres—Any funds or acres reserved under paragraph (1) for a fiscal year from a covered program that are not obligated under this program by April 1 of that fiscal year shall be returned for use under the covered program.

“(d) Allocation of funding—Of the funds and acres made available for the program under subsections (a) and (c), the Secretary shall allocate—

“(1) 25 percent of the funds and acres to projects based on a State competitive process administered by the State Conservationist, with the advice of the State technical committee established under subtitle G;

“(2) 50 percent of the funds and acres to projects based on a national competitive process to be established by the Secretary; and

“(3) 25 percent of the funds and acres to projects for the critical conservation areas designated under section 1271F.

“(e) Limitation on administrative expenses—None of the funds made available under the program may be used to pay for the administrative expenses of eligible partners.

“1271E. Administration

“(a) Disclosure—In addition to the criteria used in evaluating applications as described in section 1271B(d)(2), the Secretary shall make publicly available information on projects selected through the competitive process described in section 1271B(d)(1).

“(b) Reporting—Not later than December 31, 2014, and every two years thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report on the status of projects funded under the program, including—

“(1) the number and types of eligible partners and producers participating in the partnership agreements selected;

“(2) the number of producers receiving assistance; and

“(3) total funding committed to projects, including from Federal and non-Federal resources.

“1271F. Critical conservation areas

“(a) In general—In administering funds under section 1271D(d)(3), the Secretary shall select applications for partnership agreements and producer contracts within critical conservation areas designated under this section.

“(b) Critical conservation area designations

“(1) Priority—In designating critical conservation areas under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to geographical areas based on the degree to which the geographical area—

“(A) includes multiple States with significant agricultural production;

“(B) is covered by an existing regional, State, binational, or multistate agreement or plan that has established objectives, goals, and work plans and is adopted by a Federal, State, or regional authority;

“(C) would benefit from water quality improvement, including through reducing erosion, promoting sediment control, and addressing nutrient management activities affecting large bodies of water of regional, national, or international significance;

“(D) would benefit from water quantity improvement, including improvement relating to—

“(i) groundwater, surface water, aquifer, or other water sources; or

“(ii) a need to promote water retention and flood prevention; or

“(E) contains producers that need assistance in meeting or avoiding the need for a natural resource regulatory requirement that could have a negative economic impact on agricultural operations within the area.

“(2) Limitation—The Secretary may not designate more than 8 geographical areas as critical conservation areas under this section.

“(c) Administration

“(1) In general—Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall administer any partnership agreement or producer contract under this section in a manner that is consistent with the terms of the program.

“(2) Relationship to existing activity—The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, ensure that eligible activities carried out in critical conservation areas designated under this section complement and are consistent with other Federal and State programs and water quality and quantity strategies.

“(3) Additional authority—For a critical conservation area described in subsection (b)(1)(D), the Secretary may use authorities under the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (16 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), other than section 14 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1012), to carry out projects for the purposes of this section.”

“(c) Funding

“(1) In general—The Secretary may carry out the ACES program using funds made available to carry out each program under this title.

“(2) Exclusion—Funds made available to carry out the conservation reserve program may not be used to carry out the ACES program.”

“(a) Annual funding—For each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018, the Secretary shall use the funds, facilities, and authorities of the Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out the following programs under this title (including the provision of technical assistance):

“(1) The conservation reserve program under subchapter B of chapter 1 of subtitle D, including, to the maximum extent practicable, $25,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2014 through 2018 to carry out section 1235(f) to facilitate the transfer of land subject to contracts from retired or retiring owners and operators to beginning farmers or ranchers and socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers.

“(2) The agriculture conservation easement program under subtitle H, using, to the maximum extent practicable—

“(A) $425,000,000 in fiscal year 2014;

“(B) $450,000,000 in fiscal year 2015;

“(C) $475,000,000 in fiscal year 2016;

“(D) $500,000,000 in fiscal year 2017; and

“(E) $200,000,000 in fiscal year 2018.

“(3) The conservation security program under subchapter A of chapter 2 of subtitle D, using such sums as are necessary to administer contracts entered into before September 30, 2008.

“(4) The conservation stewardship program under subchapter B of chapter 2 of subtitle D.

“(5) The environmental quality incentives program under chapter 4 of subtitle D, using, to the maximum extent practicable, $1,750,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018.”

“(c) Technical assistance

“(1) Availability of funds—Commodity Credit Corporation funds made available for a fiscal year for each of the programs specified in subsection (a)—

“(A) shall be available for the provision of technical assistance for the programs for which funds are made available as necessary to implement the programs effectively; and

“(B) shall not be available for the provision of technical assistance for conservation programs specified in subsection (a) other than the program for which the funds were made available.

“(2) Report—Not later than December 31, 2013, the Secretary shall submit (and update as necessary in subsequent years) to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report—

“(A) detailing the amount of technical assistance funds requested and apportioned in each program specified in subsection (a) during the preceding fiscal year; and

“(B) any other data relating to this subsection that would be helpful to such Committees.”