Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Land trusts and landowners urge Congress to bolster easement programs and streamline easement valuation
Summary
Witnesses from land trusts and agricultural groups urged the Senate Agriculture Committee to maintain and strengthen easement and land protection programs in the next farm bill, to simplify sign‑up and valuation methods, and to remove administrative barriers that slow easement transactions.
Witnesses at a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing urged lawmakers to preserve and strengthen federal programs that support voluntary conservation easements and working‑land protections, citing demand from landowners and the need to keep productive land in farming.
Why it matters: easement programs such as the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP), the Agricultural Land Easement component (ALE), and the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) combine federal money with state and private funds to make long‑term land protection viable. Witnesses said these tools help protect water resources, wildlife habitat, and farm viability while keeping land…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
