{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.moran.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=A96A3D39-EE14-464F-AF5E-479C011247FC", "Sens. Moran, Thune, Klobuchar, Smith Introduce Legislation to Bolster Conservation Reserve Program", "2025-08-11", "2025", "2025-08", "Republican", "Senate", "KS", "Jerry Moran", "M000934", "www.moran.senate.gov", "moran", "https://www.moran.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) \u2013 a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry \u2013 joined Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) in introducing the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Improvement and Flexibility Act. The legislation would bolster CRP by improving access to grazing, maximizing enrollment options for producers and expediting emergency haying in response to drought and other weather-related disaster events.\n\n\u201cEquipping farmers and ranchers with improved access to CRP resources is crucial to the sustainability of the agricultural economy in Kansas,\u201d said Sen. Moran. \u201cThis bipartisan legislation grants greater flexibility for producers in Kansas and across the country to improve their economic stability while conserving our nation\u2019s farmland, wildlife habitats and water supply for future generations to benefit from and enjoy.\u201d \u201cEnsuring that CRP continues to be an effective option for producers and landowners is critical to South Dakota\u2019s agriculture industry,\u201d said Sen. Thune. \u201cAs a longtime supporter of CRP, I\u2019m proud to lead this commonsense legislation that would help advance the multiple-use benefits of this conservation program, including wildlife habitat and livestock forage potential.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Conservation Reserve Program helps equip our farmers with the tools to conserve and improve soil, water quality, and wildlife habitat,\u201d said Sen. Klobuchar. \u201cThis bipartisan legislation makes commonsense improvements to CRP that will strengthen conservation practices and landowner enrollment in this vital program.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Kansas Livestock Association (KLA) has long advocated for additional grazing opportunities on CRP acres,\u201d said Matt Teagarden, CEO of Kansas Livestock Association. \u201cGrazing benefits the native grass species, advancing the conservation goals of the program. We appreciate Senator Moran's leadership in improving CRP for producers and the land.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Conservation Reserve Program is one of our nation\u2019s most effective tools for improving wildlife habitat, water quality, and soil health on private lands, and is a vital part of the farm safety net,\u201d said Andrew Schmidt, Director of Government Affairs for Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever. \u201cThe CRP Improvement and Flexibility Act will make this critical program work better for farmers, ranchers, rural communities, and wildlife. PF and QF are grateful to Majority Leader Thune, Ranking Member Klobuchar, and Sens. Moran and Smith for their continued leadership in strengthening CRP and ensuring it remains a cornerstone of private lands conservation.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Conservation Reserve Program is an important, incentive-based program that provides flexibility for farmers and ranchers to implement voluntary conservation practices on their land,\u201d said Mike Bulk, Ducks Unlimited Kansas state policy chair. \u201cWe thank Senators Moran, Thune, Klobuchar, and Smith for their leadership in enhancing CRP to ensure landowners can continue to get the most out of this historically successful program in Kansas and across the U.S.\u201d\n\nThe CRP Improvement and Flexibility Act would:\n\nMake CRP grazing a more attractive option by providing cost-share for the establishment of grazing infrastructure \u2013 including fencing and water distribution \u2013 on all CRP practices and contracts if grazing is included in the approved conservation plan.\n\nIncrease the CRP annual payment limitation from $50,000, which was established in 1985, to $125,000 to account for inflation and rising land values and provide landowners with more CRP enrollment options to ensure resources are appropriately conserved.\n\nReinstate mid-contract management cost-share payments for activities that are not related to haying or grazing.\n\nPermanently establish the State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement practice under Continuous CRP.\n\nCreate flexibility for producers by allowing emergency haying on CRP acres when certain conditions are met and in consultation with state technical committees.\n\nFull text of the legislation can be found HERE.\n\n# # #", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:02:47Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.moran.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=A96A3D39-EE14-464F-AF5E-479C011247FC"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6486381646245718, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}