One of the state’s highest profile conservation organizations – certainly at the Capitol at least, the Georgia Conservancy is tracking a number of issues in this year’s session and monitoring anything else that pops up that is relevant to their mission.
It being week 1, not that much has happened yet that is definite but there was some news in Governor Kemp’s budget proposal that he was recommending the amount for the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program decrease by more than $7 million from the 2025 budget. The decrease is largely due to a decline in taxes from the sale of sporting goods, a portion of which is dedicated for this fund. The fund goes towards grants that help to preserve and restore access to natural resources both for recreation and conservation purposes.
Other bills or issues that the Conservancy is following this session include farmland conservation, a years in the making and likely many years addressing issue. Development is threatening farmland across the state, and for one farm, it may not be a big deal, but adding up hundreds or thousands of acres across the state and it starts to not only be an agricultural viability and natural resources issues but also a food security issue. From 1974 to 2016, the state lost 2.6 million acres of agricultural land. The Georgia Farmland Conservation Program was passed in 2023 and offers a financial incentive to conserve lands under the threat of development. A study committee was passed last year to determine if additional resources were needed and the findings were a definitive yes.
The committee has recommended an expansion of tax relief efforts, increasing the maximum acreage to qualify for the program and to provide a strong disaster relief package for farms and communities affected by Hurricane Helene. They are also recommending an increase of support for farm-based education for school systems, as well as the need to study incentives for housing or economic development that impact farmlands.
The aforementioned Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program is also on the radar. Begun in 2018, the program is authorized for a ten year period so the Conservancy will be working on building support for reauthorization. Locking in support as much as possible now, before the changes that will come with a new gubernatorial election in 2026, could be critical for the extension of the program.
In what may be a difficult environment on this issue with the priorities of the Trump administration, the Conservancy will also be pushing for protections from mining around the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Draft mining permits were issued last year by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) but tens of thousands of citizens and dozens of conservation organizations have lobbied for the final permits to be denied. As of January this year, the Georgia EPD has yet to decide on their issuance. Legislative protections were proposed last year but did not make it out of committee. Another bill passed the House overwhelmingly but did not get a floor vote by the Senate. The hope is that House bill would come up again and receive similar support.
