Federal cost share is funded by USDA, EPA, or other government agencies. There is an alphabet soup of acronyms in this category like RCPP, ACEP, EQIP, and more. You can usually find these programs by going to your local NRCS office.

The USDA has a lot of programs for different kinds of conservation practices. Be sure to ask questions like:

1. How long is the contract and can I cancel?
2. What does the sign-up process look like and is it competetive?
3. If I sign up for this program, can I use other programs in the future?

Often times, federal cost share programs offer the largest cost share per acre. For example, the RCPP program can offer up to 3 times as much as state or private programs. However, it can take longer to sign up, and applications are competetive based on things like your watershed or how much funds are in the program.

Sign up at your local NRCS office.

State cost share comes from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and Iowa Department of Natural Resources. One of the most popular you’ve heard of is the Water Quality Initiative. You can read WQI reports here for a good overview.

Especially when it comes to cover crops, state dollars can be used up quickly every year. It’s important to get signed up sooner rather than later. The state also recognizes several priority watersheds where there are bigger incentives available. Be sure to ask if you are in one of them!

State programs are often easier to sign up for than federal programs. They also stack nicely with private programs. Most offices can help you quickly, but it depends on what county you live in. Some people may not want to utilize public dollars.

We recommend starting with IDALS or Iowa DNR.

Carbon programs are privately funded by companies who are trying to lower their environmental impact. How it works: Farmers reduce their carbon footprint. A middleman tracks the impact. Companies purchase the carbon credit.

It’s worth doing research on the program that you are signing up for to better understand who is purchasing their carbon credits and how strong that relationship is. You might want to understand if it’s an inset program or an offset program and if they also use any public dollars.

Some farmers might prefer private funding instead of public. Each carbon program will have different pros and cons, so it’s up to you to research.

We aren’t familiar with all carbon programs, but we do recommend Soil and Water Outcomes, as it’s a subsidiary of one of our founding members.

Some programs are 100% privately funded such as the Iowa Seed Corn Cover Crop Initiative. There aren’t many of these out there, but they do exist.

There are some programs out there that receive both public and private funding. It’s important to know where your funding comes because it impacts what programs you can stack or sign up for in the future. If you are looking into a private program, be sure to ask where the funding is from, and if it will impact your participation in future programs.

Private funding often removes the hassle of working with a government office or on government timelines. You can also stack it on top of public funding. However, the funding amount is often smaller or restricted. For example, a private program might require you to use that companies product or data software. This is something you can always ask about before signing up!