More than half the money appropriated for the state’s Farmland Protection Program has not been sent out, while the state’s farmers face mounting economic pressures, according to a recent report by the state comptroller.
“Farms in New York operate on very tight profit margins while they struggle to stay afloat,” State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said. “The state has allocated the resources to help save family farms but those resources are languishing. Our farmers contribute billions of dollars to the state’s economy. It’s crucial to get this money to where it is needed to ensure that farmers – and all New Yorkers – reap the economic benefits of preserving and protecting the state’s farmland.”
Farmland Protection Program finds are used to purchase development rights from the farmers so that farmland is preserved for agricultural purposes in the future. This provides the farmer with money to reinvest in the farm and offers additional benefits that accompany farmland including storm water retention, filtration of surface water, and replenishment of ground water.
The state report found that while the state has allocated $205.6 million in funding to the Farmland Protection Program, just $95.5 million has been used for farmland protection.
Nearly 54 percent, or $110.1 million, of the money set aside for the program remains unused.
The unused portion of the program includes 113 approved contracts totaling $55.4 million. The contracts are pending between the state Department of Agriculture and Markets and municipalities for the purchase of agricultural conservation easements. Forty-eight percent of these contracts are more than three years old.
The remaining $54.7 million is available for new farmland protection projects.
DiNapoli’s report also found all five states bordering New York have farmland protection programs. However, while they have all lost farmland over the last ten years, only New York and Vermont have experienced a net loss of the number of farms. Furthermore, New York has lost a larger percentage of farms than Vermont.
More than half the money appropriated for the state’s Farmland Protection Program has not been sent out, while the state’s farmers face mounting economic pressures, according to a recent report by the state comptroller.
“Farms in New York operate on very tight profit margins while they struggle to stay afloat,” State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said. “The state has allocated the resources to help save family farms but those resources are languishing. Our farmers contribute billions of dollars to the state’s economy. It’s crucial to get this money to where it is needed to ensure that farmers – and all New Yorkers – reap the economic benefits of preserving and protecting the state’s farmland.”
Farmland Protection Program finds are used to purchase development rights from the farmers so that farmland is preserved for agricultural purposes in the future. This provides the farmer with money to reinvest in the farm and offers additional benefits that accompany farmland including storm water retention, filtration of surface water, and replenishment of ground water.
The state report found that while the state has allocated $205.6 million in funding to the Farmland Protection Program, just $95.5 million has been used for farmland protection.
Nearly 54 percent, or $110.1 million, of the money set aside for the program remains unused.
The unused portion of the program includes 113 approved contracts totaling $55.4 million. The contracts are pending between the state Department of Agriculture and Markets and municipalities for the purchase of agricultural conservation easements. Forty-eight percent of these contracts are more than three years old.
The remaining $54.7 million is available for new farmland protection projects.
DiNapoli’s report also found all five states bordering New York have farmland protection programs. However, while they have all lost farmland over the last ten years, only New York and Vermont have experienced a net loss of the number of farms. Furthermore, New York has lost a larger percentage of farms than Vermont.
