Arkansas farmers urge Congress to protect conservation funding

KUAR | By Daniel Breen

Farmers in Arkansas are urging Congress to make permanent funding for conservation programs under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 dedicated just under $20 billion to the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, or NRCS. Now, growers are calling on lawmakers to include that funding in the reauthorization of the large multi-year spending package known as the Farm Bill.

Jared Phillips is a professor at the University of Arkansas, and raises sheep at his farm in the Northwest Arkansas city of Lincoln. He says the funding, of which Arkansas received $724 million, helped him sustain and preserve his natural resources for future use.

Arkansas farmers urge Congress to protect conservation funding

Fred Miller/UA Division Of Agriculture

Corn research plots at the Milo J. Shult Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Fayetteville, Ark. on July 8, 2022.

Arkansas lawmakers discuss solar power, electric vehicle charging stations

KUAR | By Daniel Breen

State officials are preparing for an influx of as much as $1.5 billion in federal funding to go toward new clean energy projects.

The Inflation Reduction Act signed into law by President Joe Biden in August dedicates the funding to Arkansas over the next eight years to help fund new solar energy projects.

In a meeting of the legislature’s Joint Committee on Energy Monday, Lauren Waldrip, executive director of the Arkansas Advanced Energy Association, said farmers in the state have begun to adopt solar technology to help deal with rising energy costs.

https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/local-regional-news/2022-10-11/arkansas-lawmakers-discuss-solar-power-electric-vehicle-charging-stations

Daniel Breen/KUAR News

Sen. Bob Ballinger (R-Berryville) and Rep. Rick Beck (R-Center Ridge), co-chairs of the Arkansas Legislature's Joint Committee on Energy, listen at a committee meeting at Audubon Arkansas in Little Rock on Monday.

Energy officials tout benefits of Inflation Reduction Act; UA solar project announced

by Jeff Della Rosa (JDellaRosa@nwabj.com)

A new federal law that’s expected to impact climate change will extend or establish tax incentives for solar arrays, electric vehicles and U.S. manufacturers of solar array components, Arkansas energy officials said.

On Friday (Aug. 26), the Arkansas Advanced Energy Association hosted a virtual event to highlight how the Inflation Reduction Act will affect the energy industry. On Aug. 16, President Joe Biden signed the act into law after Congress approved it along party lines. The Arkansas Congressional Delegation voted against it.

Paul Osborne, partner for HCJ CPAs and Advisors, discussed the act’s $369 billion in climate and energy-related provisions that includes new or extended tax credits. He said a solar production tax credit that had expired in 2006 has been restored under the new law.

https://talkbusiness.net/2022/08/energy-officials-tout-benefits-of-inflation-reduction-act-ua-solar-project-announced/