U.S. Senators Peter Welch and Angus King are introducing legislation intended to protect farmland and make it easier to pass it to the next generation.
Welch, a Democrat from Vermont, and King, an independent from Maine, on Wednesday introduced the Farmland Access Act. It updates an underutilized USDA program that allows land trusts to obtain farmland, place an easement on the land and then transfer it to a farmer or rancher.
According to the American Farmland Trust more than 11 million acres of farmland has been lost to development over the past 20 years. Policy Director Tim Fink says the legislation protects agricultural land while providing a “new pathway to affordable land ownership for next generation producers.”
Senators Welch and King say they hope the legislation is included in the upcoming Farm Bill.