Explanation. Data collected through the SRA-OBP provides a basis for allocating financial and technical assistance funds for the Agricultural Management Assistance Program, Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), and Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) easements are captured on the easement pages in the online application, along with ACEP information. SRA-OBP workload and funding estimates are used to assess State needs related to regional equity requirements in the 2018 Farm Bill. Per those requirements, the SRA-OBP process will establish each State’s demonstrated need for a minimum of 0.6 percent of program funds.
The FY 2023 through 2025 SRA-OBP does not require data on needs associated with the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), EQIP and CSP components of the RCPP, or Watershed programs. CRP allocations will be based on a formula and Farm Service Agency data. RCPP funding requests will go through the RCPP application process and Watershed program requests will be handled according to current NRCS procedures.
The FY 2023 through 2025 SRA-OBP will identify estimated technical assistance needs at the program and budget object class level. States are required to provide detailed information in the CGA database for all planned contracts and agreements (with associated full-time equivalents). At this time, only the FY 2023 CGA plan is required. Last year, the list of deliverables, tags, and their definitions within the CGA were updated for clarity and to promote the initiatives of the current Administration. In addition, tags are required for reporting purposes.
A State staffing level will be provided when the application opens. The staffing level is based on the NRCS submission in the FY 2023 President’s Budget plan. NRCS is revisiting staffing limits in view of budget projections and reviewing new priorities through a targeted strategic approach. However, States should not exceed the provided staffing level for budget needs unless approval for additional staff has been obtained prior to submitting the SRA-OBP.
Training, Demonstrations, and Virtual Help Desk Office Hours. Microsoft Teams (Teams) meetings have been scheduled to provide training, demonstrations, and virtual help desk office hours for the SRA-OBP and CGA data call. Teams meeting invitations will be sent from the SRA.OBP@usda.gov email and will display as “FPAC.NRCS.SRA.OBP.TOOL.”
SRA-OBP and CGA Teams training and demonstration invitations will be sent to the following groups. Please forward to your staff as appropriate.
· State conservationists (STC) – NRCS-State-Conservationists@usda.gov
· STC executive assistants – NRCS-STC-ExecutiveAssistants@usda.gov
· Assistant STCs for Management and Strategy – AssistantStateConsForMgtStrategy@usda.gov
· Financial resources specialists – FinancialResourceSpecialists@usda.gov
· Assistant STCs for programs – NRCS-ASTC-Programs@usda.gov
· State resource conservationists – All.State.Resource.Conservationists@usda.gov
· Deputy chiefs and regional conservationists
The following are training and demonstration dates for the SRA-OBP and CGA:
· May 24, 12:00–3:00 p.m. EDT
· May 25, 1:00–4:00 p.m. EDT (Repeat)
· June 7, 12:00–3:00 p.m. EDT (Repeat)
Virtual help desk to answer questions on the SRA-OBP and CGA. Teams invitations to the virtual help desk will be sent to listserv groups mentioned above on the following dates.
· May 31, 1:30–2:00 p.m. EDT
· June 7, 1:30–2:00 p.m. EDT
· June 14, 1:30–2:00 p.m. ED
· June 21, 1:30–2:00 p.m. EDT
SRA-OBP Links. Information for the SRA-OBP application can be found on the Management and Strategy Deputy Area’s SharePoint site at NRCS Management and Strategy Deputy Area> M&S Deputy Area- State Landing Page> SRA/OBP Tools> FY2022 SRA.
The site contains the following folders:
· Archived
· Communications
· Data
· FAQs (frequently asked questions)
· User Guide (provides step-by-step guidance for navigating the SRA-OBP tool)
· Webinars (training and help desk recordings)
· Link to SRA-OBP tool
SRA-OBP tool access. States can access the SRA-OBP tool now, but the SRA-OBP team will let States know at training when to start entering their FY 2022 submissions. If you do not have access, are incorrectly aligned to a State, or need to give access to other team members, you can submit a new user access request form at the following link:
https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=5zZb7e4BvE6GfuA8-g1Glwzbjh8tL1FFlSV_KDX52o9UN0VOOVE4UTE1TDhIVjdZODNKNTJYVk83Vy4u
Staff members in the following distribution groups will be provided access to the SRA-OBP tool prior to the training:
· STCs – NRCS-State-Conservationists@usda.gov
· STC executive assistants – NRCS-STC-ExecutiveAssistants@usda.gov
· Assistant STCs for Management and Strategy – AssistantStateConsForMgtStrategy@usda.gov
· Financial resources specialists – FinancialResourceSpecialists@usda.gov
· Assistant STCs for programs – NRCS-ASTC-Programs@usda.gov
· State resource conservationists – All.State.Resource.Conservationists@usda.gov
CGA Link. Information for the CGA can be found at NRCS Management and Strategy Deputy Area> M&S Deputy Area- State Landing Page> State CGA> CGA Documents.
The site contains the following folders:
· User Guide
· Webinars
· FAQs
· Communications
· Archive
· Link to CGA Microsoft Access Database
The CGA Microsoft Access Database now has an active FY 2022 tab.
Submission deadline for SRA-OBP and CGA is June 30, 2022.
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