California Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program (CA-SALC)

Notice: _On April 14, 2025, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced the cancellation of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities (PCSC). The USDA plans to reform the program into the Advancing Markets for Producers (AMP) initiative. Contact your local USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) for more information on how to apply to the AMP initiative. _

The SALC Program supports agricultural land conservation, economic growth, and sustainable development by providing grants for three types of projects:

• Land Use Planning grants that support the development of local and regional land use policies and economic development strategies to protect critical agricultural land

• Agricultural Conservation Acquisition grants to permanently protect croplands, rangelands, and lands utilized for the cultivation of traditional resources from conversion to non-agricultural uses.​

• Capacity and Project Development grants to expand organizational capacity to develop agricultural conservation acquisition projects.

The program invests in agricultural land conservation with revenue from the California Climat​e ​Inv​estments (CCI) Fund​, made available for projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions while providing additional benefits to California communities. CCI is derived from quarterly cap-and-trade auction proceeds, which are administered by the California Air Resources Board. 

Three types of grants are offered as a part of this program:

• Agricultural Conservation Acquisition Capacity Funding – Grants to develop agricultural conservation easement and fee acquisition projects and/or cover associated costs to help close acquisition projects where the cost of the acquisition is covered by an alternate source of funding.

• Agricultural Conservation Acquisitions – Grants to protect important agricultural lands under threat of conversion to nonagricultural uses through the acquisition of voluntary, permanent agricultural conservation easements (easements) or fee title purchases. Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program Final Program Guidelines - April 2023 2

• Agricultural Conservation Planning – Grants to develop and implement plans for the protection of agricultural lands under pressure of being converted to non-agricultural uses.

The Department of Conservation works in cooperation with the Natural Resources Agency and the SGC to implement the program. ​

Cities, counties, non-profit organizations, resource conservation districts, regional park or open-space districts, regional park or open-space authorities, and federally recognized California Native American tribe or a nonfederally recognized California Native American tribe that is on the contact list maintained by the Native American Heritage Commission, are eligible to apply.

Grants go to cities, counties, RCDs, land trusts, open-space districts and tribes — not to farmers directly. A farmer or rancher benefits by selling a permanent agricultural conservation easement to one of those applicants, so the percentages below are what SALC will pay toward that purchase.

Agricultural Conservation Acquisition grants (Final Program Guidelines, August 2025):

• Easements: "Competitive grants will be awarded to cover up to ninety percent (90%) of the value of the agricultural conservation easement."

• Fee title: "Not more than twenty-five percent (25%) of available funding may be awarded for fee acquisition projects. Competitive grants may be awarded to cover up to ninety (90%) of the agricultural conservation easement value of the property's fair market value." The guidelines' own worked example: on a $1,000,000 property whose easement value is $500,000, "SALC would contribute a maximum of $450,000 (or 90% of $500,000) toward the purchase of the property."

• Tribal exception: where a tribe or tribal non-profit is the applicant/co-applicant or will own the land, "SALC may pay for up to 100% of the fair market value of the property."

• Transaction costs on top: "All projects approved for funding are eligible to receive up to $60,000—in addition to the funding toward the acquisition discussed above—to cover reasonable associated costs incurred to acquire the real property interest." Requests above $60,000 need a detailed budget.

• Appraisal risk sits with the deal: "Any additional increase in valuation above fifteen percent (15%) will need to be covered by a landowner bargain sale (donation) or by other match funders."

• Easements are permanent ("voluntary, permanent agricultural conservation easements").

Agricultural Conservation Planning grants: "Planning Grants have a $500,000 maximum grant award. The application must include a minimum ten percent (10%) match funding except as noted below." Match may come from the applicant or other sources, but "Applicants cannot utilize another Department-administered program funding as match toward the grant."

Round 11 scale and timing: "SGC anticipates approximately $58 million in funding will be available for funding for competitive awards in Round 11. Of this amount, up to 50% of funding will be made available for Round 11, Cycle A." Acquisition Phase 1 pre-proposals are accepted on rolling submittal. Cycle B: Phase 2 pre-proposals were due May 14, 2026; planning and acquisition applications June 17, 2026; project awards October 2026.

SALC is funded from Cap-and-Invest auction proceeds through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, so the amount available each round is not fixed.

Read the SALC Guidelines to determine what kind of project you wish to apply for, then submit the required materials by email to salcp@conservation.ca.gov.

Fact Sheet