CRP Improvement and Flexibility Act of 2025
The CRP Improvement and Flexibility Act of 2025 would amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to broaden and modernize the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). The bill, introduced in the Senate by Sens. Thune, Klobuchar, Moran, and Smith, aims to increase program flexibility, expand certain practices, and raise financial limits to better address drought, wildlife, and grazing needs while maintaining protections for wildlife habitat. Key changes include adding State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) lands to continuous enrollment, authorizing emergency haying/grazing under specified conditions, expanding cost-sharing to cover grazing infrastructure, clarifying mid-contract management payments, and increasing the cap on rental payments. Overall, the bill seeks to make CRP more adaptable to weather emergencies and wildlife needs, incentivize the development of grazing infrastructure, and widen participation and reenrollment opportunities for land with existing habitat improvements, while maintaining safeguards against long-term damage to vegetation and habitat.
Key Points
- 1State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement Continuous Enrollment
- 2- Adds land enrolled under the State acres for wildlife enhancement practice to continuous enrollment, expanding opportunities for long-term wildlife habitat within CRP.
- 3Emergency Haying During the Primary Nesting Season
- 4- Establishes emergency haying provisions during the final two weeks of the nesting season and outside of it, up to 50% of contract acres, in response to drought, flooding, wildfire, or other emergencies.
- 5- Criteria include severe drought designation (D2 or greater), at least 40% forage loss, or an officially coordinated determination that the action can help in disaster response without permanently damaging the cover.
- 6- Adds restrictions to ensure such haying/grazing does not cause long-term damage to vegetation that supports wildlife.
- 7Cost Sharing for Grazing Infrastructure and Reenrollment
- 8- Expands cost-sharing (including under section 1234) to cover grazing infrastructure such as interior cross fencing, perimeter fencing, and water infrastructure when grazing is part of the conservation plan.
- 9- Provides a pathway for land with grazing infrastructure installed with cost-sharing to be reenrolled after contract expiration, treating that land as planted for purposes of eligibility.
- 10Mid-Contract Management for Non-Haying/Grazing Activities
- 11- Defines management in a way that references mid-contract activities beyond haying/grazing.
- 12- Requires the Secretary to provide cost-sharing for management activities described in the statute, excluding those related to haying or grazing.
- 13Increased Rental Payment Cap
- 14- Raises the rental payment limit under CRP from $50,000 to $125,000, allowing larger or higher-value CRP rental arrangements.