CONTACT: Sara Kangas, NACD Director of Communications
(202) 547-6223; sara-kangas[at]nacdnet.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 28, 2021

NACD RESPONDS TO
PRESIDENT BIDEN’S FY22 BUDGET PROPOSAL

WASHINGTON – Today, the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) released a statement regarding President Biden’s budget for the 2022 fiscal year.

The budget proposes increases in numerous domestic agencies, including a 21 percent increase for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a 16 percent increase for the Interior Department and a 16 percent increase for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Within the conservation portfolio, the president’s FY22 budget proposes a funding level of $886 million for Conservation Operations, a $50 million increase to the account that funds conservation planning and technical assistance. The budget requests $774 million for the Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA) program within Conservation Operations.

“NACD applauds the additional funding for Conservation Operations, which funds Conservation Technical Assistance,” NACD President Michael Crowder said. “This program helps put boots on the ground in our communities to deliver locally-led conservation where it’s needed most.”

The budget also has discretionary funding requests for $175 million dollars for Watershed Operations and $10 million for Dam Rehab. The budget requests $20 million in discretionary funds for the Healthy Forest Reserve Program.

In addition, the budget also proposes $2.1 billion in mandatory budget increases over 10 years through different legislative proposals, which would need to be enacted by Congress:

• Increase adoption of net-zero agriculture technology in the Regional Conservation Partnership Program. The estimated costs over four years are $400 million (2022 through 2025).
• Increase Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations by $100 million per year. The estimated costs over 10 years are $1 billion.
• Increase Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) by $50 million per year for technology to increase drought resilience for agricultural producers. The estimated costs over 10 years are $500 million.
• Increase adoption of net-zero agriculture technology in the Healthy Forests Reserve Program. The estimated costs over four years are $200 million (2024 through 2027).

“Robust conservation funding not only helps put conservation on the ground, it also facilitates local job creation and bolsters community infrastructure,” Crowder said. “At a time when we’re facing additional weather extremes, the investments proposed in the president’s budget will strengthen the health of our nation’s natural resources for years to come.”

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About the National Association of Conservation Districts:

The National Association of Conservation Districts is the nonprofit organization that represents the nation’s 3,000 conservation districts, their state and territory associations and the 17,000 men and women who serve on their governing boards. For more than 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. For more information about NACD, visit: www.nacdnet.org.