National Association of Conservation Districts

News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONSERVATION LEADERS CONCERNED WITH 2007 BUDGET

WASHINGTON, D.C. —February 10, 2006— National Association of Conservation Districts President Bill Wilson today expressed concern with the lack of funding for conservation programs in the Administration’s proposed FY 2007 budget. “The 2007 budget includes serious reductions for conservation, environmental and natural resources programs,” said Wilson, a rancher-surveyor from Kinta, Oklahoma. “These programs provide significant benefits to landowners, taxpayers and communities.”

            Wilson stressed that the same working lands programs emphasized in the 2002 Farm Bill conservation title are significantly reduced below their authorized levels in the ’07 budget. Reduced funding will postpone complete development and implementation of newer programs such as the Conservation Security Program.

The Environmental Quality Incentives Program is also nearly $300 million below the authorized level for this year, denying farmers and ranchers the tools that they need to comply with environmental rules.

In addition, Wilson noted that USDA’s Small Watershed Protection programs are slated for elimination. In a recent testimony before Congress in support of the watershed programs, Wilson said “We support coordinating and integrating the available conservation tools to solve natural resource concerns. In the case of the watershed program, the synergy produces substantial benefits by treating the entire watershed’s natural resource concerns.”

Wilson was encouraged with the budget’s attention to new renewable energy programs. “It’s good to see an emphasis on renewable energy,” he said. “Energy alternatives have the potential to provide new opportunities for landowners across the country.”

He also applauded the first-time full funding of the Wetlands Reserve Program. The funding level will cover 250,000 acres in 2007, a 100,000 acre increase from FY 2006.

As the budget process continues, NACD is committed to working with all involved parties to provide the best possible programs and policies to address America’s natural resource concerns.

 “Federal funding is often the catalyst,” Wilson said. “The money can be leveraged with funds from state and local government, and the private sector. Farmers and ranchers make significant investments in matching funds and maintenance costs in private lands conservation,” he added. “Reductions in federal investment limit what accomplishments are feasible at the ground level.”

A table showing funding levels for the last two years and NACD's recommendations for Fiscal Year 2007 is at http://nacdnet.org/policy/appropriations/fy07/funding.phtml.

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The National Association of Conservation Districts is the non-profit organization that represents the nation’s 3,000 conservation districts and 17,000 men and women who serve on their governing boards. For almost 70 years, local conservation districts have worked with cooperating landowners and managers of private working lands to help them plan and apply effective conservation practices. NACD’s website is at www.nacdnet.org.