United States

Department of

Agriculture FARM SERVICE AGENCY

CRP Haying and Grazing

Emergency and Non-Emergency Use

Overview

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

Service Agency (FSA) administers the Conservation

Reserve Program (CRP), a federally funded voluntary

program that contracts with agricultural producers so

that environmentally sensitive agricultural land is not

farmed or ranched, but instead used for conservation

benefits. Participants establish long-term, resourceconserving plant species, such as approved grasses

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

improve water quality and develop wildlife habitat. In

return, FSA provides participants with rental payments

and cost-share assistance. Contract duration is

between 10 and 15 years. 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.

Haying and grazing of CRP acres is authorized

under certain conditions to improve the quality and

performance of the CRP cover or to provide emergency

relief to livestock producers due to certain natural

disasters. There are two types of haying and grazing

authorization: non-emergency and emergency.

Emergency Haying and Grazing

Emergency haying and grazing of CRP acres may be

authorized to provide relief to livestock producers in

areas affected by a severe drought or similar natural

disaster. Emergency haying and grazing status is

reviewed and authorized each Thursday using the U.S.

Drought monitor. Counties are approved for emergency

haying and grazing due to drought conditions on a

county by county basis, when a county is designated

as level “D2 Drought - Severe” according to the U.S.

Drought Monitor. The U.S. Drought Monitor is available

online at droughtmonitor.unl.edu.

Requests for emergency haying and grazing for

a county may also be initiated by the FSA County

Committee due to a livestock emergency. The request

must document a 40 percent or greater loss of forage

production due to the disaster event.

Primary Nesting Season

Producers located in a county that is designated as

severe drought (D2) or greater before or after the last

day of the primary nesting season qualify for emergency

haying and grazing on all eligible acres. Additionally,

producers located in counties that are eligible for a

Livestock Forage Program Payment during the primary

nesting season may also be eligible for emergency

grazing at one half the normal carrying capacity, unless

the FSA County Committee determines that forage

conditions no longer warrant emergency grazing.

FACTSHEET • MAY 2021 fsa.usda.gov

EMERGENCY HAYING AND GRAZING

PERMITTED

ACTIVITY FREQUENCY

PAYMENT

REDUCTION

PERCENTAGE

Emergency

haying outside

primary nesting

season

Producers have up to

60 days to complete

one cutting of hay

NONE Emergency

haying during

primary nesting NOT ALLOWED

season

Emergency

grazing outside Up to 90 days of

primary nesting grazing is allowed

season

Emergency

grazing during

primary nesting

season

50 percent reduction

of normal carrying

capacity, only if the

county is eligible for

LFP payments

NONE
CRP HAYING AND GRAZING: EMERGENCY AND NON-EMERGENCY USE 2

Eligible Acres

Emergency haying or grazing is limited to the acres

physically located within the boundary of the eligible

county or portion of a county. Under this authority,

acres will only be authorized for a specified time and

may end earlier than announced if conditions improve.

Producers can use the CRP acreage for their own

livestock or may grant another livestock producer use

of their CRP acreage. For emergency haying, producers

are limited to one cutting and are permitted to sell the

hay. Participants must remove all hay from CRP acreage

within 15 days after baling and remove all livestock

from CRP acreage no later than 1 day after the end of

the emergency grazing period.

Eligible Practices

Emergency haying and grazing is authorized on all

practices outside the primary nesting season including

practices implemented under State Acres For Wildlife

Enhancement (SAFE) such as CP38E SAFE-Grass when

such activity is specifically authorized in the SAFE

agreement.

If the county is approved for Livestock Forage Program

(LFP) payments, only certain practices can be hayed on

50 percent of the eligible acres.

Non-Emergency Haying and Grazing

In general, non-emergency haying may be utilized every

three years and non-emergency grazing may be utilized

every two years. Additional grazing may be available to

new and beginning farmers.

NON-EMERGENCY HAYING AND GRAZING*

PERMITTED

ACTIVITY FREQUENCY

PAYMENT

REDUCTION

PERCENTAGE

Non-emergency

grazing outside Not more than every

primary nesting other year

season

Non-emergency Not more than every

grazing during other year with a 50

primary nesting percent reduction in

season the stocking rate

Non-emergency

grazing to control 25 percent

invasive species

outside primary

nesting season

Outside the Primary 

Nesting Season, as 

determined by 

conservation plan to 

control Kudzu and 

other invasive 

species 

Non-emergency Not more than once

haying or harvest- every 3 years with 25

ing for biomass

outside primary

percent of the acreage unharvested. No 

nesting season later than Aug. 31

Non-emergency May be conducted annually by a

beginning farmer or

rancher with a contract share greater

than zero

NONE

beginning farmer

grazing outside

primary nesting

season

Intermittent and

seasonal grazing of

buffers surrounded

Non-emergency

by fields used for

agricultural

incidental grazing production may be

outside primary conducted annually

nesting season for up to 60 days

following crop

harvest or during

small grain dormancy

prior to harvest.

May be conducted

Non-emergency

once in the fall of the

first year of CRP-1

gleaning grazing before the cover is

established for up to

60 days

*Subject to a conservation plan modification for the conservation cover

to ensure no long-term damage is caused.

FACTSHEET • MAY 2021
CRP NAMEHAYING OF PROGRAM AND GRAZING: HERE EMERGENCY AND NON-EMERGENCY USE 33

Eligible Practices

All practices are eligible for non-emergency haying and

grazing except for CP12 Wildlife Food Plot and several

tree practices. Contact your FSA office for a full list of

ineligible practices.

Ineligible Acres

Acres ineligible for both non-emergency and emergency

haying and grazing include acres devoted to:

• Useful life easements;

• Land within 20 feet of a stream or other permanent

water body; and

• Any acres where haying and or grazing would cause

long-term damage to the CRP cover.

Modified Conservation Plan

Before CRP acres are declared eligible for haying or

grazing, a modified conservation plan developed by

NRCS or a technical service provider must be obtained.

The modified conservation plan must be site specific,

include the authorized duration and reflect local wildlife

needs and concerns. The primary purpose must be

to maintain vegetative cover, minimize soil erosion

and protect water quality and wildlife habitat quality.

These plans must prevent long-term damage to the

conservation cover.

File Request Before Starting

CRP participants requesting emergency or nonemergency haying and grazing must file a request with

their county FSA office indicating the acres to be hayed

or grazed before the activity begins.

For More Information

This fact sheet is for informational purposes only;

other eligibility requirements or restrictions may apply.

To find more information about FSA programs, visit

farmers.gov or contact your local FSA office. To find your

local FSA office, visit farmers.gov/service-center-locator.

FACTSHEET • MAY 2021

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