Comments on an interim rule for NRCS’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program rule or EQIP will be taken until February 18. The Center for Rural Affairs is advising farmers and ranchers to provide input on changes in the interim rule passed as part of the 2018 farm bill. Center’s Policy Manager Anna Johnson says one provision will benefit beginning producers.

She says producers should check with their county NRCS office for details on the specific changes.

Johnson says comments can be submitted online and producers can get more information on EQIP by going the Center for Rural Affairs website.

In 2020, USDA’s NRCS is expected to make $1.2 billion available nationwide for EQIP enrollment.