Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) –

Continuous Enrollment Period 

Beginning June 4, 2018

Farm Service Agency

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FACT SHEET

June 2018

CONSERVATION

Overview

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is 

announcing a continuous signup period under the 

Conservation Reserve Program (CRP signup 51). 

Offers may be accepted beginning June 4, 2018 

through August 17, 2018. 

The USDA Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) CRP is a 

voluntary program that contracts with agricultural 

producers so that environmentally sensitive 

agricultural land is used for conservation benefits. CRP 

participants establish long-term, resource-conserving 

vegetative species, such as approved grasses or trees 

(known as “covers”), to control soil erosion, improve 

the water quality and enhance wildlife habitat. In 

return, FSA provides participants with annual rental 

payments and cost-share assistance. Continuous signup 

enrollment contracts are 10 to 15 years in duration.

The Food Security Act of 1985, as amended, 

authorized CRP. The program is also governed by 

regulations published in 7 CFR, part 1410. The 

program is implemented by FSA on behalf of USDA’s 

Commodity Credit Corporation. More detailed 

information on CRP is available in the FSA fact sheet, 

“Conservation Reserve Program”, located at 

www.fsa.usda.gov/factsheets.

This fact sheet does not apply to Conservation Reserve 

Enhancement Program (CREP) enrollment, including 

re-enrollment. 

Benefits

CRP protects millions of acres of American topsoil 

from erosion and is designed to safeguard the nation’s 

natural resources. By reducing water runoff and 

sedimentation, CRP protects groundwater and helps 

improve the condition of lakes, rivers, ponds and 

streams. The vegetative covers also make CRP a major 

contributor to increased wildlife populations in many 

parts of the country.

Administration

FSA administers CRP while technical support 

functions are provided by:

• USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service

 (NRCS);

• State forestry agencies;

• Local soil and water conservation districts; and

• Other non-federal providers of technical assistance.
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CRP – CONTINUOUS ENROLLMENT - JUNE 2018

Continuous Enrollment and

Effective Date

CRP Continuous (Non-CREP) Signup 51 offers 

may be accepted beginning June 4, 2018 through 

August 17, 2018.

Under continuous CRP signup, environmentally 

sensitive land devoted to certain conservation practices 

can be enrolled in CRP at any time. Offers are 

automatically accepted provided the land and producer 

meet certain eligibility requirements and the 

enrollment levels do not exceed the statutory cap. 

Unlike CRP enrollments under general CRP signups or 

CRP Grasslands, offers for continuous enrollment are 

not subject to competitive bidding during specific 

periods.

Producers submitting acceptable CRP offers for the 

listed conservation practices must have a conservation 

plan developed and the contract approved no later than 

September 28, 2018. 

If the offered acres are currently enrolled in CRP under 

a CRP contract that expires September 30, 2018, then 

the effective start date of the new CRP contract must 

be October 1, 2018. 

If the offered acres are not currently enrolled in CRP 

then the producer may choose to defer the effective 

start date of the new CRP contract for up to six months 

after the offer is approved. All acceptable signup 51 

continuous offers must be approved no later than 

September 28, 2018. 

To offer land for continuous enrollment, producers 

should contact their local FSA office.

Eligible Producers

A producer must have owned or operated the land for 

at least 12 months prior to submitting the offer, 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 circumstances 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

Land must be cropland that is planted or considered 

planted to an agricultural commodity four of the six 

crop years from 2008 to 2013, and is 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. Certain marginal pastureland that may be 

devoted to riparian buffers is also eligible.
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CRP – CONTINUOUS ENROLLMENT - JUNE 2018

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.

Eligible Practices

For the signup period beginning June 4, 2018, (CRP 

signup 51) the land must be eligible and suitable for 

any of the following conservation practices:

• Grass Waterways, Non-easement

• Shallow Water Area for Wildlife

• Filter Strips

• Denitrifying Bioreactor on Filter Strips

• Saturated Filter Strips

• Riparian Buffer

• Denitrifying Bioreactor on Riparian Buffers

• Saturated Riparian Buffer

• Wetland Restoration on Floodplain

• Wetland Restoration, Non-floodplain

• Farmable Wetlands Pilot Wetland

• Farmable Wetland Pilot Buffer

• Duck Nesting Habitat

• FWP Constructed Wetland

• FWP Aquaculture Wetland restoration

• FWP Flooded Prairie Wetland

Payments

Under CRP continuous signup, FSA provides eligible 

participants with annual rental payments and 

cost-share assistance. Signup and practice incentives, 

as well as certain rental rate incentives are not 

available for the signup period that begins on June 4, 

2018 (CRP signup 51).

• Annual Rental Payments

 - In return for establishing long-term, resource- 

 conserving covers, FSA provides annual rental

 payments to eligible participants based on per acre

 cropland and marginal pasture land rental rates

 determined by FSA.

 - The per-acre annual rental rate may not exceed the

 calculated rate determined in advance of

 enrollment. While enrollment under CRP 

 continuous signup is not determined by a

 competitive offer process with the exception of

 CRP Grasslands, producers may elect to receive a

 rental rate amount less than the maximum payment

 rate.

• Cost-Share Assistance 

Cost-share of up to 50 percent of the

 re-reimbursable cost of installing the practice is

 provided by FSA.

For More Information

This fact sheet is provided for informational purposes 

only, other details or restrictions may apply. To find 

more information about FSA conservation programs, 

visit www.fsa.usda.gov/conservation or contact 

your local FSA office or USDA service center. To find 

your local FSA county office, visit 

http://offices.usda.gov.