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Agricultural Management Assistance (AMA) in New Jersey

The Agricultural Management Assistance (AMA) program (AMA) is a voluntary program only available in sixteen states. In New Jersey, the program specifically targets beginning and limited resource farmers, small farms, and producers who have had limited participation in other USDA financial assistance programs.

Applicants must have current crop and producer records on file with USDA’s Farm Service Agency. They must own or control the land, agree to implement specific eligible conservation practices according to the contract schedule, and qualify for farmland assessment. In addition, applicants must meet at least 3 of the 6 criteria (listed below) to be eligible for the program in New Jersey.

The criteria for AMA are:

Average annual gross farm sales $75,000 or less for the last three years
Total farm acreage of less than 50 of specialty/vegetable crops/pasture OR less than 200 of any other crops
USDA program payments less than $10,000 (total) over the last five years
Production income more than 75% of the total household income (for the previous tax year)
Farm Operating Loan (private or government) used to support the beginning farm operation within the last 10 years
Rented acreage totals more than 50% of the total production acreage of the farm

These documents require Adobe Acrobat.
AMA 2009 Fact Sheet (96 kb)
AMA Program Details (28 kb)
Applying for Financial Assistance (67 kb)
Application Documents

What Practices Can Receive Funding?

New Jersey has developed program categories around the five national priority areas for the AMA program. Practices may address more than one national priority.

Category	Eligible Practices on Cropland	Eligible Practices on Grazing Land
Reduction in non-point source pollutants	Cover Crop, Field Border, Filter Strip, Nutrient Management, Pest Management, Riparian Forest Buffer, Riparian Herbaceous Habitat	Stream Crossing, Access Control, Livestock Watering System, Riparian Forest Buffer, Riparian Herbaceous Habitat Supporting practices: Fence, Pipeline, Well
Irrigation water use efficiency	Irrigation Systems (Micro-irrigation or Sprinkler), Irrigation Water Management Supporting practices: Irrigation Water Pipe
Reduction in particulate or ozone precursor emissions	Cover Crop, Nutrient Management, Pest Management, Windbreak Establishment	Renewable power source for Livestock Watering System, Prescribed Grazing, Windbreak Establishment
Reduction in soil erosion and sedimentation	Cover Crop, Nutrient Management, Residue Management (No Till)	Animal Trails and Walkways, Pasture Planting, Prescribed Grazing
Promotion of at-risk species habitat conservation	Conservation Cover, Field Border, Filter Strip, Riparian Forest Buffer, Riparian Herbaceous Habitat, Windbreak Establishment	Riparian Forest Buffer, Riparian Herbaceous Habitat, Windbreak Establishment

How Does Signup for AMA Work?

Interested applicants can review the program information on this website and should request a new or updated conservation plan for their farm. A signed application can be filed with the local NRCS office at any time.

Applications are grouped for ranking normally once a year. A contract offer is developed based on the conservation plan, and is ranked on how well the proposed practices meet national, state, and local environmental objectives, as well as their cost-efficiency.

The state objectives of the AMA program in New Jersey include environmental risk factors of the applicant land area, such as distance to bodies of water and pollution potential from nutrients leaching into groundwater.

What are the Payment Rates and Terms?

There is a statutory annual program payment limitation of $50,000 per person per year. However, New Jersey has capped the total amount awarded in a contract in 2009 to $30,000, due to limited program funding.

Individual practice payment rates are calculated at between 50% and 75% of the typical cost of implementing the practice in New Jersey. Projected payments in the approved conservation program contract are based on practice extent and not cost. Payments are made after conservation practices are fully implemented.

Producers may contribute to the cost of a practice through in-kind sources, including personal or donated labor and use of personal equipment, as long as the value of the contribution is documented.

Program Application Documents

These documents require Adobe Acrobat.
AMA Application - CCC-1200 (33 kb)
Español CCC1200: SOLICITUD PARA EL PROGRAMA DE CONSERVACIÓN (37 kb)
AMA 2009 Self Certification (17 kb)
Conservation Planning Worksheet (29 kb)

Eligibility Documents

Form AD1026 HELWC - Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification (165 kb)
Form AD1199a NFC - Direct Deposit Sign Up (109 kb)
FormCCC901-Members Form (258 kb)
Form CCC926 - Adjusted Gross Income (259kb)
Form FSA211-POA - Power of Attorney (360 kb)