From the Farm: Illinois conservation advocates eye funding help from Senate Bill

CENTRAL ILLINOIS (WCIA) — The Illinois General Assembly has six weeks left in its session, and soil and water conservation advocates are following several topics of discussion very closely.

This includes Senate Bill 2387, which could be a permanent fix to funding for local offices, according to Eliot Clay, state executive director of the Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts.

“What this bill would do is assess what we’re calling an AG impact fee on every acre of agricultural land that is taken out of production in Illinois. The fee would be $275 an acre,” Clay said. “After that fee is collected, it would be put into a fund underneath the Department of AG that would be earmarked specifically for operations for soil and water conservation districts moving forward.”

Clay said they’re also focusing on the budget right now.

“So, the other thing we’re pushing for is a $10.5 million appropriations for operations for the next fiscal year,” Clay said. “I think that if we can do that and the funding fix bill, that will get us over the hump to maybe start, you know, kind of a new era.”