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Bill would widen nutrient‑application setback to 100 feet, add incentives for buffers and compensate tenant farmers on critical shoreline parcels
Summary
Delegate Stein introduced HB 1175 to expand riparian buffer protections by requiring a 100‑foot nutrient‑application setback on tidal‑border farmland, while offering per‑acre and tenant payments to encourage voluntary enrollment in forest and grass buffers.
Delegate Stein presented HB 1175 to increase the nutrient‑application setback along tidal waters to 100 feet (from 35 feet), expand incentives for voluntary buffer enrollment and establish payments for tenant farmers who operate enrolled land.
Proponents — including ShoreRivers, university economists and conservation groups — described riparian buffers as among the most cost‑effective practices for reducing nutrient and sediment loads to the Chesapeake Bay and for protecting low‑lying farmland from salt‑water intrusion. Witnesses said the bill targets about 2,600 acres statewide (largely on the Eastern Shore), and modeled reductions projected in testimony included roughly 83,000 pounds of nitrogen and 1.7 million pounds of sediment annually if the program is fully implemented. Policy witnesses said a $150 per‑acre annual incentive combined with upfront bonuses and tenant payments would make buffer enrollment financially competitive for landowners and tenant farmers on marginal shoreline acreage.
Several farmers and agricultural organizations signaled concerns about funding certainty and the program’s pace, noting the fiscal climate and that conservation funds are discretionary. The Maryland Grain Producers Association testified in opposition, urging a targeted voluntary approach with guaranteed funding and saying the acres involved would yield material crop value (estimated in testimony at roughly $2 million for corn at the time of testimony). The Maryland Department of Agriculture told the committee it prefers incentive‑based approaches and noted the Chesapeake Bay Legacy Act (a related administration bill) intends to stand up a LEAF‑type incentives program; MDA’s primary concern was funding availability.
Why it matters: supporters argued the bill concentrates incentives on a small area where buffers have outsized water‑quality returns, simultaneously protecting farms prone to erosion and salt‑water intrusion while producing measurable Bay load reductions. Opponents asked for clearer, dedicated funding before mandating any new setbacks, and urged careful targeting to avoid unintended loss of productive acreage.
Discussion and next steps: the sponsor and witnesses said program design intends to be voluntary for buffer enrollment and include payments to tenant farmers. The Department of Legislative Services fiscal note and agency testimony were discussed; the committee did not take a recorded final action in the hearing transcript.
