Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Conservation Reserve Program Improvement Act of 2023”.
Conservation Reserve Program Improvement Act of 2023
A BILL
To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to improve the conservation reserve program, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Conservation reserve program improvements
State acres for wildlife enhancement continuous enrollment— Section 1231(d)(6)(A)(i) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3831(d)(6)(A)(i)) is amended—
in subclause (II), by striking “and” at the end; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(IV) land that will be enrolled under the State acres for wildlife enhancement practice established by the Secretary; and”
Cost sharing payments for establishment of grazing infrastructure—
by striking “establishing water” and inserting the following: “establishing—
“(A) water”
in subparagraph (A) (as so designated), by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(B) grazing infrastructure, including interior cross fencing, perimeter fencing, and water infrastructure (such as rural water connections, water wells, pipelines, and water tanks), under each contract, for all practices, if grazing is included in the conservation plan and addresses a resource concern.”
Reenrollment of land with grazing infrastructure— Section 1231(h) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3831(h)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(3) Land with grazing infrastructure—On the expiration of a contract entered into under this subchapter that covers land that includes grazing infrastructure established with cost sharing assistance under section 1234(b)(1)(B)—
“(A) the Secretary shall consider that land to be planted for purposes of subsection (b)(1)(B); and
“(B) that land shall be eligible for reenrollment in the conservation reserve, subject to the requirements of this subchapter.”
Mid-Contract management for activities not relating to haying or grazing—
Definition of management— Section 1232(a)(5) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3832(a)(5)) is amended by inserting “(as defined in section 1231A(a))” after “management”.
Management payments— Section 1234(b)(2) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3834(b)(2)) is amended by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following:
“(B) Management payments—The Secretary shall make cost sharing payments to an owner or operator under this subchapter for any management activity described in section 1232(a)(5), except for those management activities relating to haying or grazing.”
Payment limitation for rental payments— Section 1234(g)(1) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3834(g)(1)) is amended by striking “$50,000” and inserting “$125,000”.