As county Farm Bur­eaus develop policy positions prior to the Summer Policy Conference in September, the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation has developed additional background information for three issues: the future of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the effect of federal deductibility of Iowa income taxes and livestock emission re­­porting.

The following is some background on each issue. For more detailed background, please go to http://bit.ly/2qwDXWG.

CRP rental rates

Farmers in some areas of the country have cited a high CRP rental rate as a reason that some farmers, specifically beginning farmers, are having trouble renting land at a reasonable rental rate.

By law, CRP soil rental rates must be set at market levels to ensure that the rates do not distort local rental markets. Likewise, the land rental rates must make CRP competitive with other programs and economically viable for producers. The Farm Service Agency (FSA) revisits land rental rates on a biannual basis or as needed for the implementation of a general CRP sign-up.

If a producer wants to dispute the CRP rental rates, there is a procedure in place in which FSA county committees can request that the FSA state office, state...