State Technical Advisory Committee and Local Work Groups
Purpose
STAC Annual Meeting & Agenda Focus
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1st Quarter - November (STAC)
- Prior Year Summary
- New Year Program Rollout
- Payment Schedule Recommendations
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2nd Quarter - January-March (LWG)
- Local Work Group (LWG) Meetings
- Local Resource Concerns Due April 1
- Recommended State Concerns Due April 1
- Payment Schedule Recommendations
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3rd Quarter - April-May (STAC)
- State Natural Resource Concerns
- Easement Ranking Priorities
- Review Practice Standards Changes
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*4th Quarter - July-September
- 4th Quarter Meeting only held if needed.
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The State Technical Advisory Committee provides recommendations for establishing technical guidelines and program criteria and priorities necessary to carry out conservation provisions of the Farm Bill. Roles and responsibilities include providing advice on issues such as:
- State program management policies and procedures
- Technical programmatic recommendations
- Statewide public information and outreach campaigns
- Identifying significant statewide natural resource concerns
- Guidelines for developing ranking criteria for evaluating applications
- Guidance on eligible conservation practices
- Technical guidance on conservation practices, including new, innovative practices
- Cost-share rates and incentive payment limits and methods of payment
- Identifying, monitoring, and analyzing performance indicators
- Evaluating and reporting program impacts on natural resources and the environment
- Coordinating with other Federal, State, Tribal and local public and private activities
The NRCS State Conservationist
- Acts as Committee Chair
- Ensures equal representation of interests
- Seriously considers the Committee's technical advice
- Provides notice of public meetings
The Committee is composed of individuals representing a variety of natural resource sciences and occupations that include soil, water, air, plants, wetlands, and wildlife.
Local Working Groups
The Local Working Group (LWG) is a way for NRCS to gather input and feedback from the local community to help inform our decision making. The LWG is typically chaired by the local Natural Resource Conservation District (NRCD), though Districts may choose to combine meetings to more effectively develop a strategy for an area. The LWG is advisory in nature and is relied upon in the local decisions made by the District Conservationist.
Typically meetings are held on an annual basis though may be more or less at the discretion of the specific LWG. The meetings are all open to the public, however, if you wish to ensure that you are added to the invite list, please contact your local District Conservationist and your local NRCD.
