Michigan conservation districts tell committee current funding limits their capacity; MEEP trust fund and reforestation singled out

Jerry Miller, president of the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts (MACD), and Rivkah (Rivka) Hutchinson, MACD executive director, presented an overview of the state's 75 conservation districts and asked the committee to consider higher, sustained operational funding.

Hutchinson said conservation districts are locally organized, non‑regulatory units that deliver technical assistance to private landowners for water quality, forest and wildlife management, invasive‑species control and similar practices. She said the districts are the primary vehicle for connecting private landowners with federal conservation programs and local education efforts.

MACD described the current state operational grant program administered through the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD): $3 million annually in operational grants, which the presenters said averages about $40,000 per district. MACD argued that increasing those operational funds would allow each district to hire full‑time district managers and conservation planners, enabling the districts to bring more federal farm‑bill program dollars into Michigan and expand services statewide.

Hutchinson highlighted recent program outputs and partnerships: in fiscal year 2022, conservation districts reported more than 1.79 million outreach contacts and planted more than 1 million trees (tree‑sale and reforestation activities), she said. MACD said investing in district operations generates leverage: each $1 in state operations funding, MACD reported, drew $5.10 from other sources; when federal funds are included, the ratio increases.

Committee members and MACD staff discussed the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MEEP). Hutchinson said MEEP funding comes from a trust fund financed by fertilizer and pesticide registration fees; she and other speakers said fees have not been increased in recent renewal cycles and inflation has reduced program capacity. As a result, MDARD eliminated two positions in FY 2025, the presentation said, and MACD urged support for fee adjustments and the Freshwater Protection Fund to sustain operations such as MEEP and MDARD staff who support districts.

Members asked about disaster and reforestation response after a recent severe ice storm and potential wildfire risk. MACD said operational capacity matters for emergency response and that a new reforestation cost‑share grant is being deployed to direct funding to hard‑hit areas. MACD and NRCS representatives also described long‑standing partnerships between conservation districts and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).

At the close of the committee, a procedural motion to excuse absent members passed by unanimous consent and the panel scheduled another meeting for May 6, according to the record.