Source: INDIANA UNIVERSITY submitted to
INCENTIVIZING LAND ACCESS FOR SMALL, BEGINNING AND SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED FARMERS AND RANCHERS: RESEARCH, EXTENSION AND COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1025408
Grant No.
2021-68006-33892
Cumulative Award Amt.
$499,997.00
Proposal No.
2020-05229
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Feb 1, 2021
Project End Date
Jan 31, 2025
Grant Year
2021
Program Code
[A1601]- Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities: Small and Medium-Sized Farms
Recipient Organization
INDIANA UNIVERSITY
JORDAN HALL 142
BLOOMINGTON,IN 47401
Performing Department
Public & Environmental Affairs
Non Technical Summary
Success for small, beginning, young, and/or socially disadvantaged (New Generation) producers depends on their ability to secure suitable land to start and expand their operations. Yet this is a major challenge, which governments have addressed with several types of financial incentives. Little research has been done to measure the impacts and reach of these programs. This integrated Research and Extension project fills that gap and establishes a Community of Practice to increase adoption of these promising new tools. It combines two Program Area Priories: outreach to create opportunities for entry and farm viability, and identifying opportunities and obstacles to land access and transfer. Our goal is to increase knowledge of the impacts and reach of Land Access Policy Incentives (LAPI) and to build capacity to advance their use, to facilitate access to land for a New Generation of farmers and ranchers. Through social science methods of policy analysis, survey, interview, and translation of findings to extension, the project will pursue these objectives:1. Chronicle the patterns of LAPI policy development to inform the design of future LAPI approaches 2. Increase knowledge of the reach of LAPI programs and their impacts on land transfer, land access, New Gen success, and rural prosperity 3. Provide guidance on effective methods of outreach to increase their utilization by landowners and New Gen farmers 4. Sustain a Community of Practice to promote effective financial incentives and support service providers to facilitate farm transfer and improve access to land for New Gen producers 5. Increase promotion and utilization of LAPI programs through service provider networks, conferences and e-Extension.
Animal Health Component
50%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
0%
Applied
50%
Developmental
50%
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
9010120308040%
9020120308040%
9010120304020%
Goals / Objectives
Overarching Goal: To increase knowledge of the impacts and reach of the three main LAPI approaches, and to build capacity among agricultural service providers to advance their use to facilitate access to land for small and mid-sized New Gen producers.Research Objective 1: Chronicle the patterns of LAPI policy development to inform the design of future LAPI approachesResearch Objective 2: Increase knowledge of the reach of LAPI programs and their impacts on land transfer, land access, New Gen success, and rural prosperityResearch Objective 3: Provide guidance on effective methods of outreach to increase their utilization by landowners and Next Gen farmersExtension Objective 1: Sustain a Community of Practice to promote effective financial incentives and support service providers to facilitate farm transfer and improve access to land for New Gen producersIncrease promotion and utilization of LAPI programs through service provider networks, conferences and e-Extension.
Project Methods
Overview of Research: The research will aim to add a great deal of value to the LAPI assessments that state and federal governments have been able to conduct to date. Our social science approach will combine qualitative and quantitative methods to collect primary data and analyze secondary data. Year 1 will lead with an analysis of public documents and interviews with stakeholders to orient the project and fulfill RO1. To achieve RO2, we will collect data directly from LAPI participants (landowners and New Gen producers) and analyze existing datasets to describe the LAPIs' impacts and reach. RO3 will case study patterns of participation and non-participation in LAPI programs. These methods will build from one to the next in sequence to triangulate sets of findings on LAPI reach and impacts, barriers to participation, and strategies to expand their capacity to facilitate land access and land transfer.Overview of Extension: The extension methods will interact with, inform, and be integrated into the research throughout the project. We will start by creating a Community of Practice which we will expand over the life of the project and beyond. The purpose of the CoP is twofold: 1. To build capacity to use existing programs and resources to facilitate farm transfer between landowners and New Gen producers, and 2. To improve the performance of these programs to serve more - and more diverse - New Gen producers. We have built in a staff person to coordinate the CoP, including two in person meetings, quarterly online meetings and an on-line workspace to share materials and facilitate communication between meetings. As research findings become available, we will incorporate them into AFT's land access curriculum and engage AFT's cohort of LATs to educate service providers through trainings, mentoring and extension activities. In Year 3, we will harness AFT's professional National Agricultural Land Network (NALN) to help disseminate findings and build relationships with a larger universe of professionals working to support New Gen producers and advance farmland protection, retention and access. Finally, we participate in developing proposals and presenting on findings at conferences, add policies to AFT's state policy scorecard, translate findings into fact sheets, policy briefs and other Extension products, and create dedicated LAPI web pages on AFT's Farmland Information Center (FIC) website.Research Objective 1: Chronicle the patterns of LAPI policy development to inform the design of future LAPI approachesInformation about how states and the federal government have developed the various LAPIs has so far only been collected in pieces (Meehan; Williamson & Girardi, 2016). Our comprehensive review will gather and interpret this material to prepare two deliverables, an open-access, peer-reviewed analysis and a summary version for Extension.Activities:Review key documents with a focus on legislative proceedings, service provider reports, and states' evaluations and audits of their policiesConduct interviews with key stakeholdersBased on interview and document data, analyze the process of policy adoption, implementation and evaluationResearch Objective 2: Increase knowledge of the reach of LAPI programs and their impacts on land transfer, land access, New Gen success, and rural prosperity Here we will resolve gaps in the understanding of how LAPIs may be influencing New Gens' access to land, their contributions to agriculture, and landowners' patterns of farm transfer. This objective will describe how incentives affect their participants' perspectives, decisions, and behaviors. The methods will also identify any contrasts between participants and non-participants, according to their contributions to agriculture (product mix, farm scale, marketing mix), geographies, demographics, and representation of subgroups.Activities:Conduct robust surveys of New Gen and landowner participants in state easement incentives and BFTCs and report findings directly to these participantsExtract and analyze IRS Schedule F data to test for effects of LAPIs on new small and mid-sized farm viabilityResearch Objective 3: Provide guidance on effective methods of outreach to increase the utilization of LAPIs by landowners and Next Gen producersThe activities we will undertake to fulfill RO1 and RO2 will prepare us to focus RO3 on barriers to participation and their corresponding opportunities for LAPI programs to enhance their delivery and promotion.Activities:Online survey of CRP-TIP leads in 50 statesCase studies of patterns of participation and non-participationExtension Objective 1: Sustain a Community of Practice to examine and extend financial incentives to improve opportunities for land access and farm viability for New Gen producersActivities: Facilitate quarterly Zoom meetings for CoP membersOrganize two in-person conveningsEstablish and maintain an online workspace and collaboration platform for CoP members to communicate and share resources Share research findings and resources to advance CoP members' workExtension Objective 2: Increase promotion and utilization of LAPI programs through a variety of service provider networks, conferences and e-Extension.Activities:Develop four policy briefs to explain LAPI programs and each of the approaches Profile success stories from research and highlight them in online profiles or story mapWidely disseminate outputs from Activities 1 and 2 as well as research findings (see Table 5) through the CoP, FIC, LAT cohort, NALN, BFRDP, e-Extension and other lists suggested by the CoP and NATIncorporate LAPI materials into AFT's land access and transfer curricula for LATs to use in New Gen producer trainingsDeliver at least three presentations at beginning farmer and other stakeholder conferences Create a LAPI collection of project deliverables and support materials on AFT's FIC

Progress 02/01/23 to 01/31/24

Outputs
Target Audience:Broadly, we focused our Year 3 activities on public sector stakeholders in land access for young, beginning, and BIPOC farmers and ranchers. Our specific target audiences included: Practitioners and academics, via our refereed journal publication Our project's Community of Practice: Made up of 23 professional service providers nationwide who are employed by state and federal public agencies to interpret, deliver, and manage Land Access Policy Incentive (LAPI) programs. Our project's National Advisory Team: Made up of 11 service providers, scholars, and Land Grant University extension professionals. This group serves to advise on and evaluate the project. The National Council of State Agricultural Finance Programs. This organization's 11 member-states issue bonds and loans to support beginning farmer/rancher land access. Major stakeholders in Iowa, Minnesota, and Nebraska's LAPIs, who received summaries of our research results, which are available to all via the Farmland Information Center: https://farmlandinfo.org/publications/survey-of-beginning-farmer-tax-credit-participants-state-summaries/ And the following organizations, to whom we presented findings: Indiana Farmland Access and Conservation Community of Practice Indiana University Food and Agrarian Systems Consortium American Farmland Trust state policy team Emerging Farmers Conference Farmland Access Summit Indiana State Department of Agriculture Rocky Mountain Farmers Union Changes/Problems:We were grateful to be able to extend for a year after some internal turnover and pandemic related delays. Thank you. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The network learning derived through the LAPI Community of Practice provides and sustains a level of peer-to-peer learning among the 23 members that will continue throughout the project and is resulting in achieving one learning outcome, which is for the members of the Community of Practice to learn from one another. Our presentations of results in Year 3 trained the approximately 200 total audience members about LAPIs, providing them with information to carry forward in their work as agri-fessionals, and our journal article will reach many more. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Journal article, presentations, and convenings of the Land Access Policy Incentives Community of Practice. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Research: Submit the results of our interview phase about how states are creating LAPIs to the journal Agriculture and Human Values Complete analysis of the surveys of LAPI participants and submit the results to the journals Land Use Policy and Land Complete analysis of the surveys of Twin Cities growers and BIPOC farmers and ranchers nationwide and submit their results to journals TBD Complete secondary analysis of Iowa Beginning Farmer Tax Credit effects and submit to National Tax Journal Propose to present to the following conferences, among potential others: University of Vermont Food Systems Research Center Research Summit, National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, State Agricultural & Rural Leaders, Agriculture, Food & Human Values Society, Rural Sociology Society, European Society for Rural Sociology Extension: Publish an online Land Access Policies collection on the Farmland Information Center, with findings of state- and federal-level LAPI research Continue to convene series of meetings: Leadership team (monthly) Community of Practice (quarterly virtual and annually in person) National Advisory Team (biannual) Facilitate these groups' collaborations through the National Agricultural Land Network Disseminate case studies of LAPI participants

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Overarching Goal: To increase knowledge of the impacts and reach of the three main LAPI approaches, and to build capacity among agricultural service providers to advance their use to facilitate access to land for small and mid-sized New Gen producers. Research Objective 1: Chronicle the patterns of LAPI policy development to inform the design of future LAPI approaches 1) Major activities completed: Drafted academic manuscript about LAPI creation processes reflecting interview and document review phase. Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: Interviews with 66 LAPI stakeholders Document review and discourse analysis of state LAPI creation Discourse analysis covering C-SPAN footage about 2008 CRP-TIP creation Research Objective 2: Increase knowledge of the reach of LAPI programs and their impacts on land transfer, land access, New Gen success, and rural prosperity 1) Major activities completed: Published journal article about the reach and impacts of CRP-TIP Issued preliminary state-specific findings from survey of 1,100 beginning farmer/ranchers and landowners who have enrolled in the well-established Beginning Farmer Tax Credits of Nebraska, Iowa, or Minnesota, as well as two newer programs (Kentucky and Pennsylvania) Conducted survey of 50 beginning farmers who have enrolled in the Farmland Purchase and Protection Incentives of Delaware or Maryland (50% response rate), initiated analysis Secondary data analysis of relationship between the existence of the Iowa BFTC and beginning farm prevalence in Iowa Interviews with 66 LAPI stakeholders Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: National CRP-TIP enrollment and spending data 1,100 BFTC survey responses 50 FPPI survey responses 66 state LAPI stakeholder interviews 15 CRP-TIP stakeholder interviews 10 follow-up BFR interviews Document review 3) Discussion of results of JAFSCD article (here) Abstract: Next-generation farmers face immense challenges in securing land. In recent years, some state- and federal-level land access policy incentives (LAPIs) have been implemented to address these chal­lenges. In this paper, we assess the Transition Incentives Program (TIP), an initiative of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Conservation Reserve Program that is funded by Congressional farm bills. TIP offers landowners two years of financial incen­tives for leasing or selling to a beginning or socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher (categories of farmers defined by the U.S. Department of Agri­culture). In our study, we characterize TIP partici­pants to understand where and how TIP assists beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. Our findings demonstrate that TIP serves some landowners and next-generation farmers, primarily in the Midwest and Mountain West. We demonstrate a spatial mismatch between where next-generation farmers live and high rates of TIP participation. Variable participation may be due to inconsistent outreach and limits to the program design. We identify key barriers and provide insights to improve TIP and other land access programs for next-generation farmers. Research Objective 3: Provide guidance on effective methods of outreach to increase their utilization by landowners and Next Gen farmers 1) Major activities completed: Published journal article about CRP-TIP outreach Developed and launched survey of BIPOC farmers and ranchers nationwide to explore their views of CRP-TIP Procured follow-up Cooperative Agreement with USDA-FSA to examine CRP-TIP outreach and utilization in greater depth Developed and launched survey of Minnesota Twin Cities urban and peri-urban growers to explore their LAPI needs Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: 140 BIPOC farmer/rancher vis à vis CRP-TIP survey responses 25 Twin Cities urban grower survey responses Interviews with 66 state LAPI stakeholders 15 CRP-TIP stakeholder interviews Document review Extension Objective 1: Sustain a Community of Practice to promote effective financial incentives and support service providers to facilitate farm transfer and improve access to land for New Gen producers 1) Major activities completed: Convened quarterly virtual Community of Practice meetings & one in person Hired facilitators to design and spearhead discussions with the Community of Practice imagine and prepare for their potential transition to self-governance(through a complementary SARE grant) 4) Key outcomes or other accomplishments realized: Learning outcome: Community of Practice members are learning from one another Extension Objective 2: Increase promotion and utilization of LAPI programs through service provider networks, conferences and e-Extension. 1) Major activities completed: Convened quarterly virtual Community of Practice meetings Convened one Community of Practice meeting in person (through a complementary SARE grant) Presented to conferences (see Products) Issued a Land Access Policies collection on the Farmland Information Center (here) Published a project website: https://sfss.indiana.edu/research/lapi/index.html

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Horst, M., Valliant, J., and J. Freedgood. 2024. An evaluation of the federal Transition Incentives Program on land access for next-generation farmers. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 13(2): 73-90. Special issue: Transformative Action in Food Systems. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2024.132.006
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Press release for JAFSCD article by American Farmland trust here: https://farmland.org/ushering-new-and-beginning-farmers-onto-agriculture-acreage-through-federal-land-access-policy-incentives/
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Public summaries of Beginning Farmer Tax Credit research results: https://farmlandinfo.org/publications/survey-of-beginning-farmer-tax-credit-participants-state-summaries/
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Valliant, J. and M. ONeill. Land Access Policy Incentive Programs. Indiana Farmland Access and Conservation Community of Practice. August 9, 2023.
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2023 Citation: Successful grant proposal: USDA Farm Service Agency Conservation Reserve Program - Transition Incentives Program: Outreach and Technical Assistance Agreements for $299,994, titled National Evaluation to Clarify Patterns of TIP Participation and Land Use and Recommend Strategies to Serve Grass-Based Production Systems and More Historically Underserved Farmers and Ranchers in Priority States. USDA-FSA press release here: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/news-room/news-releases/2024/usda-rallies-partners-to-help-with-outreach-to-beginning-veteran-and-socially-disadvantaged-producers-on-the-conservation-reserve-program-transition-incentives-program
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Project website: https://sfss.indiana.edu/research/lapi/index.html
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: ONeill, M., Heck, J., Andreas, C., and S. Lourey. Policy Action for Land Access: Whats Working and Whats Next. Upper Midwest Farmland Summit. November 14, 2023. Chaska, Minnesota.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Valliant, J., ONeill, M., Thomas, C., Nebola, T., Back, T., and A. Roe. Supporting the Next Generation of Farmers: Land Access Policy Incentives. National Council of State Agricultural Finance Programs Annual Conference. October 2, 2023. Raleigh, North Carolina.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Valliant, J. Community Partnerships for Mutually Rewarding Research. Indiana University Food and Agrarian Systems Consortium Symposium. September 1, 2023. Bloomington, Indiana.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Valliant, J. and M. ONeill. Supporting the Next Generation of Farmers: Land Access Policy Incentives. American Farmland Trust state policy team briefing. November 30, 2023.


Progress 02/01/22 to 01/31/23

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences served by our Year 2activities include the project's Community of Practice and National Advisory Team, among others. The Community of Practice is made up of 23 professional service providers who are employed by state and federal public agencies to interpret, deliver, and manage Land Access Policy Incentive (LAPI) programs. The National Advisory Team is made up of 11 service providers, scholars, and Land Grant University extension professionals. This group serves to advise on and evaluate the project. We also presented findings to targeted groups of stakeholders, for example the National Council of State Agricultural Finance Programs (NCOSAFP) and USDA professionals nationwide, including RD, FSA, and NRCS Changes/Problems:We are a bit delayed in pursuing our extension objectives due to the pandemic interfering with some planned travel and staffing changes. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The network learning derived through the newly-established Community of Practice provides and sustains a level of peer-to-peer learning that will continue throughout the project and is resulting in achieving one learning outcome, which is for the members of the Community of Practice to learn from one another. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Seven virtual presentations of results to members of our project's Community of Practice, National Advisory Team, and the NCOSAFP (total of approximately 140 unique audience members). The project is disseminating written reports in Year 3. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Research: Submit article of interview results for publication Publish article of CRP-TIP findings in JAFSCD Begin new USDA-FSA supported primary research with CRP-TIP participants Finish analyzing Beginning Farmer Tax Credit participant survey data and issue findings Survey Farm Purchase and Protection Incentive participants, analyze data, and issue findings Case study sequence: Complete discourse analysis of CRP-TIP creation and related interview series Conduct survey of the LAPI needs of urban and peri-urban growers in the Minnesota Twin Cities Submit for publication secondary analysis of Iowa Beginning Farmer Tax Credit effects Conference presentations Extension: Publish an online Land Access Policies collection on the Farmland Information Center, with findings of state- and federal-level LAPI research Continue to convene series of meetings: Leadership team (monthly) Community of Practice (quarterly virtual and annually in person) National Advisory Team (biannual) Facilitate these groups' collaborations through the National Agricultural Land Network Disseminate case studies of LAPI participants

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Impact statement Problem statement and project purpose: Success for small, beginning, young, and/or socially disadvantaged producers depends on their ability to secure suitable land to start and expand their operations. Yet this is a major challenge, which governments are addressing with several types of financial incentives. As a country we have invested over $235 million in Land Access Policy Incentives (LAPIs), yet little research has been done to measure the impacts and reach of these policy programs. This integrated Research and Extension project fills that gap and establishes a Community of Practice to increase adoption of these promising new tools. Our goal is to increase knowledge of the impacts and reach of LAPIs and to build capacity to advance their use, to facilitate access to land for a New Generation of farmers and ranchers. Year 2 activities: Data collection continued through interviews with 58 stakeholders in state and federal LAPI programs. These interviews informed a survey instrument we used to learn from landowner and BFR participants in five states' Tax Credits that aim to entice landowners to sell or lease to a BFR instead of an established farmer/rancher (Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania). Interviews also informed our analyses of publicly available Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) data and FOIA'd CRP-Transition Incentives Program (TIP) data, to assess the reach of the federal LAPI and clarify opportunities to improve its mobilization, uptake, and design. LAPIs are generally passed by a Legislature (or Congress), signed into law, and then handed to an agriculture, economic development, or finance agency to interpret, implement, and manage. Our project now convenes the public servants who manage LAPI programs around the country for a Community of Practice. In Year 2 the Community of Practice convened quarterly, and we received a grant from the NCR-SARE Professional Development Program to convene the Community of Practice two times in person during years 3 and 4 and support their transition to becoming self-governing. We also convened our research and National Advisory Teams, which serve to evaluate the project. The project's research and extension leadership meets monthly for an integrated conversation. We disseminated results to stakeholders at each of these 19 virtual meetings, and to the virtual conference of the NCOSAFP. Year 2 impact: The 23 members of the Community of Practice are now engaged in regular conversations with peers from around the country. This cadence fulfills one learning outcome, which is for the Community of Practice to learn from one another. The conversations, which are created by this project, provide the members with innovations and improvements to bring home to their states, opportunities to support one another and sustain motivation, and ultimately strengthen their service to farmers/ranchers and landowners, contributing to the land access movement as coordinated peers. The Community of Practice co-creates the project's research activities, now underway to deliver some of the first cross-state evaluations of these major public policy investments to support landowners in transferring land and agricultural opportunities to New Generation farmers and ranchers. The project interacted with about 1100 individuals about LAPIs over the course of Year 2 data collection. We have collected many narratives as well as quality empirical data about land access and policy efforts to facilitate emerging farmers' and ranchers' secure access to land, and landowners in transferring their land. Overarching Goal: To increase knowledge of the impacts and reach of the three main LAPI approaches, and to build capacity among agricultural service providers to advance their use to facilitate access to land for small and mid-sized New Gen producers. Research Objective 1: Chronicle the patterns of LAPI policy development to inform the design of future LAPI approaches 1) Major activities completed: Developed survey instrument Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) Drafting manuscript to disseminate results 2) Data collected: Interviews with 58 LAPI stakeholders Document review and discourse analysis of LAPI creation Research Objective 2: Increase knowledge of the reach of LAPI programs and their impacts on land transfer, land access, New Gen success, and rural prosperity 1) Major activities completed: Conducted survey of 1040 beginning farmer/ranchers and landowners who have enrolled in the well-established Beginning Farmer Tax Credits of Nebraska, Iowa, and Minnesota, as well as two newer programs (Kentucky and Pennsylvania) Preliminary secondary data analysis analysis of relationship between the existence of the Iowa BFTC and beginning farm prevalence and earnings in Iowa Interviews with 58 LAPI stakeholders Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: 1040 survey responses Interviews with 58 LAPI stakeholders Document review Research Objective 3: Provide guidance on effective methods of outreach to increase their utilization by landowners and Next Gen farmers 1) Major activities completed: Interviews with 58 LAPI stakeholders Survey development: LAPI needs of Minnesota urban and peri-urban growers Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: Interviews with 58 LAPI stakeholders Document review Extension Objective 1: Sustain a Community of Practice to promote effective financial incentives and support service providers to facilitate farm transfer and improve access to land for New Gen producers 1) Major activities completed: Established a Community of Practice and convened kickoff and quarterly meetings Received grant funding from NCR-SARE to continue convening the Community of Practice after the AFRI project ends, and facilitate their transition to self-governance 4) Key outcomes or other accomplishments realized: Learning outcome: Community of Practice members are learning from one another Extension Objective 2: Increase promotion and utilization of LAPI programs through service provider networks, conferences and e-Extension. 1) Major activities completed: Established a Community of Practice and convened quarterly meetings Supported the managers of two states' brand new LAPI programs (Washington and Ohio) by incorporating them into the Community of Practice Presented to the annual conference of the NCOSAFP Received grant funding from NCR-SARE to continue convening the Community of Practice after the AFRI project ends, and facilitate their transition to self-governance Prepared to issue a Land Access Policies collection on the Farmland Information Center website Published a project website: https://sfss.indiana.edu/projects/national/lapi/index.html 2) Key outcomes or other accomplishments realized: Learning outcome: Community of Practice members are learning from one another

Publications

  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Project website: https://sfss.indiana.edu/projects/national/lapi/index.html
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Horst, M. An Assessment of the Transition Incentives Program, and Valliant, J. and M. ONeill. Interviews with Delaware Easement Incentive Stakeholders: Preliminary Takeaways. Public virtual presentation of findings: November 17, 2022.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Valliant, J. and M. ONeill. Incentivizing Land Access through Public Policies: National Research, Extension and Community of Practice. National Council of State Agricultural Finance Programs, virtual conference. November 11, 2022
  • Type: Other Status: Under Review Year Published: 2022 Citation: Grant proposal submitted to the USDA Farm Service Agency Conservation Reserve Program - Transition Incentive Program: Outreach and Technical Assistance Agreements for $299,994, titled National Evaluation to Clarify Patterns of TIP Participation and Land Use and Recommend Strategies to Serve Grass-Based Production Systems and More Historically Underserved Farmers and Ranchers in Priority States
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Successful grant proposal submitted to the NCR-SARE Professional Development Program for $89,958, titled In Service to Beginning Farmer/Rancher Land Access: An Expanded and Independent Community of Practice for Managers of Land Access Policy Incentives


Progress 02/01/21 to 01/31/22

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences served by our Year 1 activities include the project's Community of Practice and National Advisory Team. The Community of Practice is made up of professional service providers who are employed by state and federal public agencies to interpret, deliver, and manage Land Access Policy Incentive (LAPI) programs. The National Advisory Team is made up of service providers, scholars, and Land Grant University extension professionals. This group serves to advise on and evaluate the project. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The network learning derived through the newly-established Community of Practice provides and sustains a level of peer-to-peer learning that will continue throughout the project and is resulting in achieving one learning outcome, which is for the members of the Community of Practice to learn from one another. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The project did not yet have results in Year 1, but will in Years 2 and 3. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Research: Complete stakeholder interviews Analyze Tax Credit participant survey data and issue preliminary findings Collect data from Easement Incentive participants Begin case study sequence Issue white paper of CRP-TIP findings Extension: Publish an online Land Access Policies collection on the Farmland Information Center Continue to convene series of meetings: Leadership team (monthly) Community of Practice (quarterly) National Advisory Team (biannual) Apply for AFRI-NIFA conference funds if NCR-SARE funds do not come through

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Impact statement Problem statement and project purpose: Success for small, beginning, young, and/or socially disadvantaged producers depends on their ability to secure suitable land to start and expand their operations. Yet this is a major challenge, which governments are addressing with several types of financial incentives. As a country we have invested over $235 million in Land Access Policy Incentives (LAPIs), yet little research has been done to measure the impacts and reach of these policy programs. This integrated Research and Extension project fills that gap and establishes a Community of Practice to increase adoption of these promising new tools. Our goal is to increase knowledge of the impacts and reach of LAPIs and to build capacity to advance their use, to facilitate access to land for a New Generation of farmers and ranchers. Year 1 activities: Data collection began through interviews with 45 stakeholders in state and federal LAPI programs. These interviews informed a survey instrument we developed to learn from landowner and BFR participants in five states' Tax Credits that aim to entice landowners to sell or lease to a BFR instead of an established farmer/rancher. (Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania have this tax credit as of spring 2022). Interviews also informed our analysis of publicly available Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) data and subsequent FOIA request of CRP-Transition Incentives Program (TIP) data to assess the reach of the federal LAPI and clarify opportunities to improve its mobilization, uptake, and design. LAPIs are generally passed by a Legislature (or Congress), signed into law, and then handed to an agriculture, economic development, or finance agency to interpret, implement, and manage. Our project now convenes the public servants who manage LAPI programs around the country for a Community of Practice. In Year 1 we convened the Community of Practice for a two-day virtual kickoff. Quarterly meetings followed, as did a funding proposal to the NCR-SARE Professional Development Program to convene the Community of Practice two times in person and support their transition to becoming self-governing. We also convened our research and National Advisory Teams, which serve to evaluate the project. The project's research and extension leadership meets monthly for an integrated conversation. Year 1 impact: The 13 members of the Community of Practice are now engaged in regular conversations with peers from around the country. This cadence fulfills one learning outcome, which is for the Community of Practice to learn from one another. The conversations, which are created by this project, provide the members with innovations and improvements to bring home to their states, opportunities to support one another and sustain motivation, and ultimately strengthen their service to farmers/ranchers and landowners, contributing to the land access movement as coordinated peers. The Community of Practice co-creates the project's research activities, now underway to deliver some of the first-ever cross-state evaluations of these major public policy investments to support landowners in transferring land and agricultural opportunities to New Generation farmers and ranchers. Overarching Goal: To increase knowledge of the impacts and reach of the three main LAPI approaches, and to build capacity among agricultural service providers to advance their use to facilitate access to land for small and mid-sized New Gen producers. Research Objective 1: Chronicle the patterns of LAPI policy development to inform the design of future LAPI approaches. 1) Major activities completed: Developed survey instrument Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: Interviews with 45+ LAPI stakeholders Document review Research Objective 2: Increase knowledge of the reach of LAPI programs and their impacts on land transfer, land access, New Gen success, and rural prosperity. 1) Major activities completed: Developed survey instrument Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: Interviews with 45+ LAPI stakeholders Document review Research Objective 3: Provide guidance on effective methods of outreach to increase their utilization by landowners and Next Gen farmers. 1) Major activities completed: Developed survey instrument Regular convenings of LAPI service providers (Community of Practice, National Advisory Team) 2) Data collected: Interviews with 45+ LAPI stakeholders Document review Extension Objective 1: Sustain a Community of Practice to promote effective financial incentives and support service providers to facilitate farm transfer and improve access to land for New Gen producers 1) Major activities completed: Established a Community of Practice and convened kickoff and quarterly meetings Submitted funding proposal to convene the Community of Practice in person and facilitate their transition to self-governance 4) Key outcomes or other accomplishments realized: Learning outcome: Community of Practice members are learning from one another Extension Objective 2: Increase promotion and utilization of LAPI programs through service provider networks, conferences and e-Extension. 1) Major activities completed: Established a Community of Practice and convened kickoff and quarterly meetings Submitted funding proposal to convene the Community of Practice in person and facilitate their transition to self-governance Prepared to issue a Land Access Policies collection on the Farmland Information Center website Published a project website: https://sfss.indiana.edu/projects/national/lapi/index.html 4) Key outcomes or other accomplishments realized: Learning outcome: Community of Practice members are learning from one another

Publications

  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Land Access Policy Incentives. Indiana University Sustainable Food Systems Science. https://sfss.indiana.edu/projects/national/lapi/index.html