BUFFER Act

The "Building Up Farmland Frontiers for Ecological Resilience Act," or BUFFER Act, aims to clarify and expand land eligibility for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) under the Food Security Act of 1985. This legislation specifically modifies the criteria for land enrollment, focusing on parcels subject to certain environmental regulations. A key provision makes land eligible for CRP enrollment if it is already otherwise qualified and a Tribal, State, or local law, ordinance, or regulation mandates a resource-conserving or environmental protection measure or practice. This change broadens the scope of land that can participate in the program, encouraging compliance with local environmental standards through federal conservation incentives. However, the bill explicitly states that land where such measures are required due to an administrative or court order will not be eligible for enrollment, preventing the program from subsidizing compliance with punitive actions.