Remarks by Kathy Gugulis,
Deputy Chief for Strategic Planning and Accountability
Natural Resources Conservation Service,
at the 2002 Mid-Atlantic RC & D Association Annual Conference

Rehoboth Beach, DE,
October 9, 2002

I am pleased to attend your meeting on behalf of our new Chief, Bruce Knight. He sends his best wishes and looks forward to the opportunity of meeting and working with you. He is very interested in RC&D Councils and the innovative activities you do. He is very interested in exploring the potential opportunities to expand the conservation of natural resources and improve the well-being of our local communities.

I would like to commend Sharon Ruggi for her leadership as both president of the Mid-Atlantic and as treasurer for the National Association of RC&D Councils board of directors. Also, I want to congratulate the Capital RC&D Area in Pennsylvania. When the Secretary designated the Capital RC&D area last January, that completed RC&D coverage in Pennsylvania. I understand the Mid-Atlantic Region now has one applicant area left – the Liberty RC&D Applicant Area in New Jersey -- to complete coverage throughout the region!


Budget

That leads me to the next topic I want to share with you, the budget. As you are probably aware, Congress has not finalized our budget for Fiscal Year 2003 which began on October 1. Concerning the RC&D program, no decisions can be made on whether we recommend that the Secretary designate any new RC&D Areas until we have more certainty about the final budget level. The House proposes a $7 million increase, the Senate a $2 million increase over FY2002.

Both Chief Knight and the National RC&D Association are in agreement that our first priority is to provide appropriate funds for the 368 designated areas. Only with a significant increase (such as the Senate’s $7 million) would we recommend that a few new areas be designated. We currently have 19 applications on hand and expect to have at least 10 more by the end of October. We continue to support achieving nationwide coverage, but only with the level of funding to support each area.

The RC&D program has done well over the last few years in support from Congress, and with your continued hard work and successful projects, I see no reason that support will not continue.


New Farm Bill

Chief Knight’s number-one priority is to implement the new Farm Bill. It contains the single most significant investment in conservation in farm bill history. Of course, a major milestone for you was the permanent authorization of the RC&D program. With a history of 40 plus successful years, I guess Congress has come to recognize that the RC&D program has stood the test of time in outstanding fashion. In addition to the permanent authorization, changes in the statute included specific recognition for the first time of the RC&D Councils and the state, regional and national associations as the key partner in this program.

In exchange for providing permanent authorization, Congress has requested that we complete a program evaluation and submit a report to them by June of 2005. We will be working with you in completing this evaluation. I challenge you to look beyond the RC&D statute in the Conservation Title to the other provisions and explore with your State Conservationists how you can use these resources to accomplish the conservation goals in your communities. You should regard the Technical Service Provider process, EQIP, Farmland Protection, and all other provisions of the bill as tools for you to use as appropriate.

You should monitor our website Farm Bill page and as new proposed regulations are issued for each program, offer your suggestions on how we can most effectively implement the programs. You can also find at this location copies of fact sheets and other materials to help you understand all the new provisions and opportunities.


Accountability

This administration established a set of President’s Management Initiatives: strategic management of human capital, competitive sourcing, improved financial performance, expanding e-government, and budget and program integration. These initiatives are affecting how NRCS and all other federal agencies will operate. They will lead to overall improvement in the effectiveness of the federal government.

These initiatives also require an even higher level of accountability for performance. We are being challenged to link future budget levels to performance -- or results of implementing each program. As we work with you, the information we need to report results each year of your activities will help both NRCS and you to better understand what you accomplished, how it was tied to your area plan, and what benefits resulted.

With that in mind, I ask that you bear with us as we adjust to the changes in how we carry out our work. I also want to reassure you that you will still set the agenda for the work that you think is important to accomplish in your area and we remain committed to helping you get that work done.


Chief Knight’s Priorities

Chief Knight has been on the job since May. He has set a number of priorities for our agency, I’ve already told you his top priority -- implement the Farm Bill. His other priorities include implementing the President’s management initiatives, which I just covered; increasing outreach and workforce diversity; and, finally, strengthening our technical delivery system. I hope you can see yourselves embedded in each of these priorities.


Conclusion

We look to our RC&D partnership for the innovative accomplishments that directly tie to these priorities. We are delighted with having the RC&D program and having such wonderful, dedicated people as yourselves as partners! Together we have and will continue to accomplish outstanding things to improve the environment and quality of life in this country. I applaud you for your efforts and appreciate the support