CSP Montana Ranking Questions

Ranking Pools

Montana uses the following ranking pools for CSP applications:

• Agricultural land (includes crop, pasture, range, associated agricultural land, and farmstead land uses)
• Agricultural land - Beginning Farmer or Rancher (BFR)
• Agricultural land - Socially Disadvantaged Farmer or Rancher (SDFR)
• Agricultural land - Organic (only one pool for both certified and transitioning)
• Climate Smart agricultural land (includes crop, pasture, range, associated agricultural land, and farmstead land uses)
• Climate Smart Non-industrial Private Forest (NIPF) (includes forest, associated agricultural land, and farmstead)
• Non-industrial Private Forest (NIPF) (includes forest, associated agricultural land, and farmstead)
• Non-industrial Private Forest - Beginning Farmer or Rancher (NIPF-BFR)
• Non-industrial Private Forest - Socially Disadvantaged Farmer or Rancher (NIPF-SDFR)

NRCS uses the following questions to evaluate eligible applications for CSP and to prioritize applications for potential funding:

Applicability Questions

(Determines which ranking pools an application can be considered in.)

• Agricultural Lands (Area) Ranking Pool. Is the land in the operation agricultural land with land uses of crop, pasture and/or range?
• BFR Agricultural Lands Ranking Pool. Did the applicant self-certify as a beginning farmer or rancher (BFR) on the NRCS-CPA-1200, Conservation Program Application, AND, is the land in the operation agricultural land with land use of crop, pasture and/or range?
• SDFR Agricultural Lands Ranking Pool. Did the applicant self-certify as a socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher (SDFR) on the NRCS-CPA-1200, Conservation Program Application, AND, is the land in the operation agricultural land with land use of crop, pasture and/or range?
• Organic Agricultural Lands Ranking Pool. Is 75% or more of the land in the operation certified organic or transitioning to organic, AND, is the land in the operation agricultural land with land use of crop, pasture and/or range?
• NIPF Ranking Pool. Is the land in the operation nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) land?
• BFR NIPF Ranking Pool. Did the applicant self-certify as a beginning farmer or rancher (BFR) on the NRCS-CPA-1200, Conservation Program Application, AND, is the land in the operation nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) land?
• SDFR NIPF Ranking Pool. Did the applicant self-certify as a socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher (SDFR) on the NRCS-CPA-1200, Conservation Program Application, AND, is the land in the operation nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) land?

Category Questions

Which administrative area is this application managed in?

• Bozeman Area Grazing Lands (at least 51% of the total acres of planned activities occur on range and/or pasture) - Big Horn, Broadwater, Carbon, Gallatin, Golden Valley, Meagher, Musselshell, Park, Rosebud, Stillwater, Sweet Grass, Treasure, Wheatland, Yellowstone counties
• Bozeman Area Crop Production (at least 51% of the total acres of planned activities occur on Crop land, includes hay land) - Big Horn, Broadwater, Carbon, Gallatin, Golden Valley, Meagher, Musselshell, Park, Rosebud, Stillwater, Sweet Grass, Treasure, Wheatland, Yellowstone counties
• Great Falls Area East sub-group - Valley, Phillips, Blaine, Hill, Fergus, Judith Basin, Petroleum counties
• Great Falls Area West sub-group - Cascade, Chouteau, Pondera, Glacier, Toole, Liberty counties
• Miles City Area Central sub-group - Dawson, Fallon, McCone, Prairie, Wibaux counties
• Miles City Area North sub-group - Daniels, Richland, Roosevelt, Sheridan counties
• Miles City Area South sub-group - Carter, Custer, Garfield, Powder River counties
• Missoula Area - Beaverhead, Deer Lodge, Flathead, Granite, Jefferson, Lake, Lewis and Clark, Lincoln, Madison, Mineral, Missoula, Powell, Ravalli, Sanders, Silver Bow, Teton counties

Are the PLUs in the application in Montana?

Program Questions

Questions apply to all fund pools.

1. Does the applicant meet the NRCS definition of a veteran farmer or rancher (VFR)?
2. Did the applicant self-certify as a limited resource farmer or rancher (LRFR) on the NRCS-CPA-1200, Conservation Program Application?
3. Did the applicant participate in the Conservation Reserve Program Transition Incentives Program (CRP-TIP), and land included in the CSP application has come out of CRP within the last two years?

Resource Questions

Questions apply to all fund pools.

1. Does the application improve the priority resource concern of an active TIP developed from local working group (LWG) priorities as part of Montana Focused Conservation (MFC)? 51% of the land in the application must be within the TIP boundary and activities must support the purpose of the TIP.
2. Is 51% of the land in the application within the boundary of Joint Chiefs' Landscape Restoration Partnership (JCLRP) project areas; National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) implementation watersheds; Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) project areas; Sage Grouse Core Areas; AND include activities that improve the RCs of the national initiative or focus project?
3. Producer will adopt at least one ENHANCEMENT BUNDLE that improves Degraded Plant Condition as identified in the bundle description, and includes an enhancement for that resource concern category.
4. Producer will adopt at least three individual conservation ENHANCEMENTS that improve Degraded Plant Condition.
5. Producer will adopt two individual conservation ENHANCEMENTS that improve Degraded Plant Condition.
6. Producer will adopt one conservation ENHANCEMENT that improves Degraded Plant Condition.
7. Producer will not adopt conservation enhancements that improve Degraded Plant Condition.
8. Will the producer improve the Montana priority resource concern category Livestock Production Limitation by adopting one of the following conservation ENHANCEMENT options?
9. Producer will adopt at least one ENHANCEMENT BUNDLE that improves Livestock Production Limitation as identified in the bundle description, and includes an enhancement for that resource concern category.
10. Producer will adopt at least three individual conservation ENHANCEMENTS that improve Livestock Production Limitation.
11. Producer will adopt two individual conservation ENHANCEMENTS that improve Livestock Production Limitation.
12. Producer will adopt one conservation ENHANCEMENT that improves Livestock Production Limitation.
13. Producer will not adopt conservation enhancements that improve Livestock Production Limitation.
14. Will the producer improve the Montana priority resource concern category Terrestrial Habitat for wildlife by adopting one of the following conservation ENHANCEMENT options?