National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture

Farmland Protection Program (FPP)

Program Description

The Farmland Protection Program provides funds to help purchase rights to keep productive farmland in agricultural use. Working through existing programs, USDA joins with state, tribal, or local governments to acquire conservation easements or other interests from landowners. USDA provides up to 50 percent of the costs of purchasing easements. (For the FPP, a conservation easement is an assigned right prohibiting any development, subdivision or practice that would damage the agricultural value or productivity of the farmland. It is legally recorded in an agreement between a landowner and a qualified organization, and restricts land to agriculture and open space use. Transactions may qualify for a tax deduction.)

Program Administration

The FPP is administered by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service through state, Tribal, or local governments or non-governmental organizations.

Program Status

FPP is not a new program. Section 388 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (1996 Farm Bill) created the FPP. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Farm Bill) expanded the program beyond state and local governments to include non-governmental organizations as eligible entities. It also makes farm and ranch land containing historical and archaeological sites eligible. The 2002 Farm Bill also allows a State, Tribal, or local government or nongovernmental organization to supplement its share of the easement cost through a landowner's donation, not to exceed 25 percent of the appraised fair market value of the conservation easement.

How the Program is Funded

FPP will receive $597 million in mandatory funding through 2007.

Using the Program

A landowner submits an application to an entity—a State, Tribal, or local government or a non-governmental organization—that has an existing farmland protection program. In exchange for payment, participating landowners agree not to convert their land to nonagricultural uses and to develop and implement a conservation plan for any highly erodible land. The NRCS State conservationist, with advice from the State Technical Committee, awards funds to qualified entities to conduct their farmland protection programs. These entities acquire conservation easements from landowners.

The state conservationist may consult with the NRCS State Technical Committee and review the requests for participation by using a ranking system of USDA priorities to determine: the likelihood of conversion considering developmental pressure; zoning; utility availability and related factors; the quality of the land considering the soils; economic viability; size and product sales; and other factors including its historical, scenic and environmental qualities.

Eligibility Criteria

To qualify for FPP, the land offered must be part or all of a farm or ranch and must: contain prime, unique, or other productive soil or historical or archaeological resources; be included in a pending offer from a State, Tribal, or local government or nongovernmental organization's farmland protection program; be privately owned; be covered by a conservation plan for any highly erodible land; be large enough to sustain agricultural production; be accessible to markets for what the land produces; and be surrounded by parcels of land that can support long-term agricultural production. If the land cannot be converted to nonagricultural uses because of existing deed restrictions or other legal constraints, it is ineligible for FPP.

Who to Contact

Denise C. Coleman, National FPP Manager
202-720-9476

Your local USDA Service Center, listed in the telephone book under U.S. Department of Agriculture or at http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app, or your local conservation district.

Internet Resources

"Building Better Rural Places", description of the program: http://www.attra.ncat.org/guide/a_m/frpp.html

NRCS's Farmland Protection page:
http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/frpp/

Adapted from "Building Better Rural Places" and NRCS's Farmland Protection Program Fact Sheet.