The Voluntary Agricultural Land Repurposing Act of 2023 authorizes the federal government to provide competitive matching grants to states and Indian tribes for programs that voluntarily convert irrigated farmland to other uses in order to reduce water consumption. Eligible programs must operate on a basin-wide scale, reduce water use for at least 10 years, and provide additional environmental or community benefits such as habitat restoration, renewable energy projects, recreational areas, or reestablishment of tribal land uses. The bill allocates $250 million in funding for fiscal years 2024 through 2028, with half of the annual funds reserved for pilot programs. Priority will be given to programs that directly benefit disadvantaged communities or were developed through multi-stakeholder planning processes. The legislation also requires the Secretary of the Interior to submit annual reports to Congress detailing the water savings achieved and environmental benefits realized from funded programs.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.