FACT SHEET

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

January 2011

 Conservation Reserve Program, General Sign-Up 41, March 14-April 15, 2011

Overview

USDA’s Farm Service Agency 

(FSA) will hold a Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) 

general sign-up from March 14 

through April 15, 2011.

CRP is a voluntary program 

that helps agricultural producers use environmentally 

sensitive land for conservation 

benefits. Producers enrolled in 

CRP plant long-term, resourceconserving covers to control 

soil erosion, improve water 

and air quality and develop 

wildlife habitat. In return, 

FSA provides participants with 

rental payments and cost-share 

assistance. Contract duration 

is between 10 to 15 years. Accepted contracts for sign-up 

41will begin on Oct. 1, 2011. 

FSA administers CRP, while 

other USDA agencies and 

partners provide technical support. More detailed information on CRP is available in the 

FSA fact sheet “Conservation 

Reserve Program.”

Submitting CRP Offers

Land that is not currently enrolled in CRP may be offered 

for enrollment during CRP 

sign-up 41. In addition, CRP 

participants with contracts expiring on Sept. 30, 2011, may 

submit offers.

To submit CRP offers, producers must visit their local FSA 

office. FSA will accept offers 

only during the sign-up period 

(March 14 through April 15, 

2011). To find your local FSA 

office, visit the USDA’s website at http://offices.sc.egov.

usda.gov/locator/app.

Eligible Producers

To be eligible for CRP enrollment, a producer must have 

owned or operated the land for 

at least 12 months prior to the 

end of the CRP sign-up period, 

unless:

• The new owner acquired 

the land due to the previous owner’s death; 

• The ownership change occurred due to foreclosure 

where the owner exercised 

a timely right of redemption in accordance with 

state law or; 

• The circumstance of the 

acquisition present adequate assurance to FSA 

that the new owner did not 

acquire the land for the 

purpose of placing it in 

CRP.

Eligible Land

To be eligible for placement 

in general sign-up CRP, land 

must be cropland (including 

field margins) that is planted 

or considered planted to an 

agricultural commodity four of 

the six crop years from 2002 to 

2007, and be physically and legally capable of being planted 

(no planting restrictions due to 

an easement or other legally 

binding instrument) in a normal manner to an agricultural 

commodity. Alfalfa or other 

multiyear grasses and legumes 

grown in a rotation not to exceed 12 years may be eligible 

for this year. 

Additional Cropland 

Requirements

In addition to the eligible land 

requirements, for general signup, cropland must meet one of 

the following criteria:

• Have a weighted average 

erosion index of eight or 

higher;

• Be expiring CRP acreage 

or; 

• Be located in a national 

or state CRP conservation 

priority area.

CRP Payments

FSA provides CRP sign-up 41 

participants with annual rental 

payments, including certain 

incentive payments and costshare assistance:

Rental Payments

• In return for establishing long-term, resource 

conserving covers, FSA 

provides rental payments 

to participants. FSA bases 

rental rates on the relative 

productivity of the soils 

within each county and the 

average dryland cash rent 

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FACT SHEET

CRP General Sign-Up 41 January 2011

or cash-rent equivalent. 

County office staff working with the producer will 

calculate the maximum 

CRP rental rate for each 

offer prior to enrollment. 

Producers may offer land 

below the rate to increase 

the likelihood that FSA 

will accept their offe

Cost-Share Assistance

• FSA provides cost-share 

assistance to participants 

who establish approved 

cover on eligible cropland. 

The cost-share assistance 

cannot exceed 50 percent 

of the participant’s costs to 

establish approved practices.

Ranking CRP Offers

FSA will rank offers for CRP 

sign-up 41 according to the 

Environmental Benefits Index 

(EBI). FSA collects data 

(primarily based on location, 

soils information and selected 

conservation practice) and 

determines the environmental 

indices for the land offered.

FSA ranks each eligible offer 

in comparison to all other 

offers and selects from that 

ranking. After the sign-up 

ends, the Secretary will decide 

where to make the EBI cutoff. 

Those who have met previous 

sign-up EBI thresholds are not 

guaranteed a contract under 

this sign-up. Producers may 

consult with local FSA and 

NRCS staff on how to maximize EBI points and increase 

the likelihood that their offer 

will be accepted.

More information on EBI for 

CRP sign-up 41 is available 

by reading the FSA fact sheet, 

“Conservation Reserve Program Sign-up 41, Environmental Benefits Index.”

CRP Continuous Sign-up

In addition to CRP sign-up 

41, producers at any time can 

participate in CRP continuous 

sign-up, in which producers 

can enroll the most environmentally sensitive land.

More information on CRP continuous sign-up is available in 

the FSA fact sheet “Conservation Reserve Program Continuous Sign-up.”

For More Information

For more information on CRP, 

contact a local FSA office, or 

visit FSA’s website at http://

www.fsa.usda.gov/crp

__________________________________

The U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) prohibits discrimination in all 

its programs and activities on the basis of 

race, color, national origin, age, disability, 

and where applicable, sex, marital status, 

familial status, parental status, religion, 

sexual orientation, genetic information, 

political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or 

part of an individual’s income is derived 

from any public assistance program. (Not 

all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) 

Persons with disabilities who require 

alternative means for communication of 

program information (Braille, large print, 

audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s 

TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice 

and TDD). To file a complaint of Discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office 

of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Ave. 

SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call 

(800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 

(TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity 

provider and employer.

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