Conservation Reserve Program

General Signup 62 Period 

Mar. 4, 2024 through Mar. 29, 2024

Overview 

USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) will 

conduct a general Conservation Reserve 

Program (CRP) signup from March 4, 

2024, through March 29, 2024. CRP is a 

federally funded voluntary program that 

contracts with agricultural producers so 

environmentally sensitive agricultural 

land is not farmed or ranched, but is 

instead devoted to conservation benefits. 

CRP participants establish long-term, 

resource-conserving 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. Accepted 

contracts for this general CRP signup 

period will become effective Oct. 1, 2024. 

CRP is authorized by the Food Security 

Act of 1985 and was reauthorized by 

the Agricultural Improvement Act of 

2018 (the 2018 Farm Bill) and was 

extended through the Further Continuing 

Appropriations and Other Extensions Act, 

2024. FSA administers CRP, while other 

USDA agencies and partners provide 

technical support. 

Submitting General 

CRP Offers 

Land not currently enrolled in CRP may 

be offered during this general CRP signup 

period. In addition, CRP producers whose 

CRP contracts are expiring on Sept. 30, 

2024, may offer the expiring land in 

general CRP signup 62. To submit general 

CRP offers, producers must contact their 

local FSA office. FSA will accept general 

CRP offers only during the signup period. 

Who is Eligible? 

To be eligible for general CRP, a producer 

must have owned or operated the land for 

at least 12 months prior to the end of this 

general CRP signup 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 

presents adequate assurance to 

FSA the new owner did not acquire 

the land for the purpose of placing 

it in CRP. 

What Land is Eligible? 

To be eligible for general CRP, land must be 

cropland (including field margins), planted, 

or considered planted, to an agricultural 

commodity four of the six crop years from 

2012 to 2017 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 also be eligible. 

For More 

Information

On CRP is available 

in the FSA fact sheet, 

“Conservation 

Reserve Program.”

On EBI for the general 

CRP signup period is 

available by reading 

the FSA fact sheet, 

“Conservation Reserve 

Program Enrollment, 

Environmental 

Benefits Index.”

On continuous CRP Signup 

59 is available in the FSA 

fact sheet, “Conservation 

Reserve Program 

Continuous Sign-Up.”

Visit fsa.usda.gov. To 

locate your local FSA 

office, visit: farmers.gov/

service-locator.

This fact sheet is provided 

for informational purposes 

only; other restrictions or 

requirements may apply. 

Consult your local FSA 

office for details.

MARCH 2024
CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM GENERAL SIGNUP 62 PERIOD 2

Additional Cropland 

Requirements 

In addition to the eligible land 

requirements for the general CRP 

signup period, cropland must meet one 

of the following criteria: 

 Have a weighted average erosion 

index of eight or higher; 

 Be expiring CRP acres or; 

 Be located in a national or state 

CRP conservation priority area. 

CRP Payments 

FSA provides producers whose 

offers are selected for general 

CRP enrollment with annual rental 

payments and cost share assistance. 

 Rental Payments: In return for 

establishing permanent resourceconserving covers, FSA provides 

annual rental payments to 

participants. FSA bases rental 

rates on the relative productivity 

of the soils within each county 

and the average dryland cash 

rent subject to a statutory 85 

percent proration. County Office 

staff working with the producer 

will calculate the maximum 

CRP rental rate for each offer. 

Producers may offer land below 

the rate to increase the likelihood 

their offer will be accepted. 

 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. 

 Climate-Smart Practice Incentive: 

FSA provides an incentive of 

3, 5, or 10 percent included in 

the annual rental payment for 

CRP practices that will increase 

carbon sequestration, reduce 

GHG emissions, and otherwise 

are climate smart practices. 

The incentive amount is based 

on the estimated benefits of 

each practice. 

Ranking General CRP 

Offers 

FSA will rank offers for the general 

CRP signup period 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 signup period ends, the Secretary 

of Agriculture will decide where to 

make the EBI cutoff. Those who have 

met previous EBI thresholds are not 

guaranteed a contract under this 

signup period. Producers may consult 

with local FSA and Natural Resource 

Conservation (NRCS) staff on how to 

maximize EBI points and increase the 

likelihood their offer will be accepted. 

Additional CRP Signup 

Opportunities

In addition to the general CRP signup 

62 period, producers can offer their 

most environmentally sensitive land 

in continuous CRP signup 61 or in the 

upcoming Grassland CRP signup.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. fsa.usda.gov