USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA)

WHO WE ARE

The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) implements agricultural policy, administers credit and loan programs, and manages conservation, commodity, disaster, and farm marketing programs through a national network of offices. Within the state of Vermont, agricultural producers and landowners are served by county-based Service Centers, often housing FSA, the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), and a regional Natural Resource Conservation District (NRCD). Specific to the focus of the VAWQP, FSA administers the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). As an extension to that program, the State of Vermont has an agreement with USDA FSA for the Conservation Reserve Enhanced Program (CREP) which provides for increased payments to participants and State funded assistance for the planning and maintaining of four approved conservation practices. CRP’s objective is to cost-effectively assist owners and operators in conserving and improving the nation’s natural resource base. The Vermont CREP is designed to improve water quality via non-point source pollutant reduction, enhance fish and wildlife habitat, and enhance the ability of agricultural producers to enroll certain acreage under the CRP where deemed desirable by USDA and the State.

BALANCING HEALTHY WATERWAYS & FARM OPERATIONS

FSA is responsible for the administration of CRP/CREP but relies on NRCS and certified Technical Service Providers (TSP) for field work and planning of conservation practices, evaluating soil payment rates, cost sharing (C/S) policies, working with the landowner on the completion, maintenance and management of installed conservation practices, and completing status reviews. FSA staff in the County Offices are responsible for determining landowner and land eligibility as dictated by national policy, obtaining all forms necessary for payment eligibility, and issuing payments. All USDA NRCS and many other federally funded programs also require that producers establish records with FSA before they can be eligible for programs. “Establishing records” includes submitting forms to establish payment eligibility as well as identifying and assigning a farm number to the property that a project is proposed for. This registration process is a prerequisite for farm producers interested in receiving conservation assistance and enables FSA, as mentioned above, to determine landowner and land eligibility as dictated by national policy. The best way for producers to complete this process is to contact their local FSA office using the Farmers.gov website!

CONTACT

- For State FSA Office information and location, check out the Vermont FSA webpage

- To find the local FSA office and staff in your area, you can search the Service Center Locator
- If you are working with a producer who is interested in the CREP program, you can reach out the CREP Coordinators who will help plan the project, navigate the process and enroll the eligible lands.

STAY INFORMED

You can sign up for updates from the FSA Vermont on our website and visit USDA’s Farmers.gov website

WHAT CONNECTS US TO VAWQP

Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) / Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP)

Establishing Farm Records and assisting in making Eligibility Determinations for other federally funded conservation programs including USDA NRCS Programs.

BUILDING YOUR NETWORKS

This series of short videos introduces resources that can help Vermont's beginning farmers grow successful, resilient farm businesses. Our guests share insights and tips to building productive relationships with lenders, insurers and USDA agency staff.
The series is a collaboration of the University of Vermont Agricultural Risk Management Project and New Farmer Project. It is made possible by funding from USDA Northeast Extension Risk Management Education Center.

WHAT WE DO

NATURAL RESOURCES FUNDING TO LANDOWNERS

The CRP/CREP program provides for Annual Rental payments for land entered into the program over 10 or 15 years, a Signup Incentive Payment, Practice Incentive Payments, and Cost Sharing on the installation of approved and eligible practices.

LIVESTOCK EXCLUSION AND WATERING FACILITIES

installing practices in pastured areas often requires fencing to exclude livestock from waterways, stream crossings to minimize the waterway exposure, and water tubs, tubing and spring development if necessary. These components can all be cost-shared in CRP/CREP

TREE PLANTINGS & RIPARIAN BUFFERS

Riparian Forest Buffers are the primary practice employed in the CRP/CREP program for which cost sharing is offered to assist in tree planting. Grass Waterways and Filter Strips are also cost shared eligible practices.

FISH AND WILDLIFE HABITAT IMPROVEMENT

One of the purposes for CRP/CREP is the improvement of fish and wildlife habitat. Tree planting can create shaded areas that will then cool the water making it habitable for certain species.

TRAINING FOR PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS

USDA partners are typically included in relevant training being offered.

FARM LOAN AND DISASTER ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS

The Vermont FSA State Office is located in Colchester. There are nine county offices located in USDA Service Centers around the state. The nine offices are located in Brattleboro, Middlebury, Morrisville, Newport, Rutland, St. Albans, St. Johnsbury, Williston and White River Junction. We have approximately 50 employees statewide dedicated to assisting the roughly 7,000 farms in the state and helping to provide economic stability for Vermont producers. FSA serves agriculture by providing federal program benefits such as annual operating loans and land purchases, commodity price supports, disaster relief, and conservation.

Learn More about FSA Programs

In 2019, the CRP Program celebrated 30 years, and fsa collected successful projects from across the US.

2017 CREP Buffer Planting at Chapman Family Farm in Tunbridge Vermont with the local Farm to School Program. Photo Courtesy of Katherine Kain, US Department of Fish and Wildlife Service

CHAPMAN FAMILY FARM, TUNBRIDGE VT

Driving along route 110 in Tunbridge, you can spot the Chapman Family Farm with its two old wooden silos behind the covered bridge on Belknap Brooke Road. Although before you spot the farm, you may see a handful of kids playing in the river along the road. For many years, the 204-acre property sat with empty barns, that is until last year when Corey and Ann Chapman, their five children, and 120 organic dairy cows decided to make it their home. On the farm, water quality conservation practices have become the norm for the Chapmans. Last fall, a liquid manure pit and barnyard was finished with cost-share funding assistance through the USDA NRCS Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Sixty60 acres of the 204-acre farm is conserved preserved through a conservation easement with the Vermont Land Trust. The Chapmans were also compensated for their channel management rights by the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation for a 14-acre River Corridor Easement. This basically prevents them from developing land adjacent to the river or managing the river unless it migrates outside of the corridor, leaving the river to naturally alter its form to its least erosive state without interference. Other water quality projects include collecting and storing barn roof runoff and milkhouse waste away from the barnyard and major production areas. The Chapman Family Farm also serves as an educational farm for the local Farm to School programs from the Sharon and Tunbridge schools. They schools use it the farm to teach students about soil conservation, erosion, the effects of tropical storm Irene, riparian buffers, local history, and dairy farming. Additionally, it gets the kids out of the classroom and in their community learning about the age-old tradition of dairy farming in Vermont. Most recently, the Chapman family has implemented a 50-foot forested riparian buffer planted with sycamores, basswoods, and other native trees, through the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). The Chapmans received 100% cost-share funding for the buffer implementation with funding from the Farm Service Agency and the US Fish and Wildlife. They received up-front incentive payments for the project from both the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets and the US Farm Service Agency (FSA). Additionally, the Chapmans will also receive yearly rental payments for the next 15 years from the FSA for the acreage of land taken out of production.
On May 4^th and 5^th, Farm-to-School students from Sharon and Chelsea spent the day outside planting the Chapman’s 2.17-acre forested buffer with assistance from the White River Partnership, and on the 11^th of May, Royalton and Hartford schools spent the day planting trees. “We’re trying to get every middle-schooler in Vermont dirty,” says Ann. The Chapman Family Farm serves as an important educational space for the local Farm-to-School programs; the schools use the farm to teach students about soil conservation, erosion, the effects of tropical storm Irene, riparian buffers, local history, and dairy farming. Additionally, it gets the kids out of the classroom and in their community, planting pumpkins, potatoes or trees, learning about the tradition of dairy farming in Vermont, and the importance of water quality.

JUMP-IN!

The National Agricultural Statistics Service surveys approximately 280,000 farms and ranches across the United States for their total acres operated and acres rented for cash for each land use category (irrigated cropland, non-irrigated cropland, and permanent pasture) for the current year. The Farm Service Agency (FSA) uses cash rent county estimates to determine market-based rates in administering USDA programs, such as the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Other state and federal government agencies, universities, and research organizations use these data for other forms of economic analysis. The data provide farmers and ranchers with current information about rental rates in their county and are available for their use in making decisions regarding renting and leasing farmland.

Check out the data visualization tool to see how Vermont compares in cash rent estimates!

These values also vary on the county level and crop type level, you can contact your local office for more specific rate information or if you are working with a producer who is considering the CREP Program and would like to understand the potential range of rental payments associated with that program.

Another great resource for learning about risk management is the Agricultural Risk Management and Crop Insurance Education Program at UVM Extension:

Agricultural Risk Management and Crop Insurance Education Program

WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONNECTING WITH YOU!

Have questions or comments about this orientation section?
To learn more about Vermont FSA and their programs, you can contact Eileen Powers, Agricultural Program Specialist, at eileen.powers@usda.gov

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