At Soil Health Summit, Hoeven Outlines Importance of Voluntary, Farmer-Friendly Conservation Programs

MCKENZIE, N.D. – Senator John Hoeven today addressed the Advancing Soil Health for a Healthy America Summit at the Black Leg Ranch, where he discussed his efforts as chairman of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee and a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee to: Advance voluntary, farmer-friendly conservation programs. This includes: Hoeven-authored provisions he has included in the Senate Farm Bill 2.0: The SCALE Act – Provides matching grants to support state-led soil health and wildlife habitat programs, like Governor Armstrong’s Legacy Soil Health and Habitat Program. Joint Chiefs Program – Reauthorizes the program, which has provided more than $3.2 million for partnerships with private landowners to help improve and restore grasslands in North Dakota. Maintaining programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). Secure critical priorities for livestock producers in the Senate Farm Bill, such as: MCOOL – Includes an amendment based on Hoeven-sponsored legislation that requires mandatory country-of-origin labeling (MCOOL) for beef. Prairie Dog Management – Prevents prairie dog colonies from expanding beyond reasonable levels. The provision amends prairie dog management plans for the Dakota Prairie Grasslands to limit prairie dog habitat to no more than 1.5 percent of any single grazing allotment and establish a 1-mile buffer along adjacent state and private lands. Support agriculture research, including projects focused on improving soil health and grazing and rangeland management that are being undertaken by the Agricultural Research Service’s (ARS) Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory in Mandan. “North Dakota’s farmers and ranchers know their land and water better than anyone, and their stewardship of these resources is second to none. That’s why we’re focused on making sure federal conservation programs are voluntary and farmer-friendly. Whether it’s securing matching federal funds for state-led efforts like Governor Armstrong’s Legacy program or supporting voluntary partnerships through the Joint Chiefs Programs and similar initiatives, we are advancing solutions that support producers’ bottom lines,” said Hoeven. “That’s exactly what we’ve done with the Senate Farm Bill, which also includes key priorities for our livestock producers. Not only have we secured MCOOL and better prairie dog management, which have been longstanding goals for our ranchers, but we continue to support our ag researchers as they develop the latest, greatest methods for improving the quality and health of our soil and rangelands.” -###-