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Quarterly reports discontinued
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VSP capital funding for cost-share available
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New! Cost-share project submittal and review deadline schedule
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Financial updates and resources
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SCC agency-wide cost-share reminders that apply to VSP
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DIPs in VSP: Only for CDs
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Billing and vouchering FAQ updated
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SCC Grant and Contract Policy and Procedure Manual effective July 1, 2023
- VSP equipment purchase request form
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VSP training on demand! Webinar recordings available
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Partner announcements and events
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DAHP heritage barn grant applications open Sept. 1
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Farmers to be reimbursed for compost expenses in new WSDA program
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Conservation Program Explorer tool and check out monitoring resources library!
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Upcoming Virtual Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework (ACPF) Technical Training
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Oct. 12 Joint TP and SAC meeting details
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VSP budget details
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Please update your website contact information
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Sign up for the VSP calendar
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VSP website: www.vsp.wa.gov
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Oct. 12: Next Joint TP and SAC meeting
Oct. 12, 2023, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Pullman and online
Physical location: USDA-NRCS Pullman Plant Materials Center, 4900 SE Terre View Drive, Pullman, WA 99163
Online: Zoom link
Meeting ID: 823 4604 9516
Passcode: 883387
This fourth meeting will be held in Pullman and online. The seven counties in the Southeast region and two from the Northeast of Washington are invited to present--Benton, Franklin, Whitman, Walla Walla, Columbia, Garfield, Asotin, Stevens, and Lincoln. More details below in Oct. 12 Joint TP and SAC meeting details.
Thank you for submitting your two-year reports!
Two-year VSP Status Reports – all in! All 27 VSP counties were successful in submitting their two-year status report (as required by RCW 36.70A.720 (1) (j)) by Aug. 30, 2023.
Congratulations and thanks for your hard work!
Reporting is a very important part of the success of VSP, and the two-year reports are a chance for each county to update the public and stakeholders about the status of their VSP plans and accomplishments.
SCC welcomes your feedback on how well this year's Smartsheet form worked for submittal. Reports will be uploaded to the VSP website and made available to the public through the VSP County Directory.
Remember, if you have not already, the two-year report should also be sent to your county (usually presented or provided to the board of county commissioners), as that is required by statute.
Thank you!
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SCC leadership has decided that quarterly reports, set out as a deliverable under Section 2(E) of the SCC-County contract for VSP implementation, are no longer required, effective immediately.
That is good news for counties and their technical service providers (TSPs) as it frees up more time for other VSP implementation activities. Quarterly reports were designed originally to inform SCC that the county and its TSPs were making progress on VSP implementation during the early part of VSP. However, as VSP has matured, the need for such quarterly reporting has diminished as other reporting (two-year and five-year) has taken prominence.
All other contract deliverables will remain in place, which includes statutory reporting requirements. Please review your SCC-County VSP implementation contract for all the deliverables.
If a county or its TSP wishes to continue to submit quarterly reports, that is acceptable, but no longer required. VSP staff will work to remove all deadlines, reminders, and other information related to the quarterly reports from VSP webpages, VSP electronic calendar, and other places. If you have any questions, please contact me.
A memo outlining this change was provided by email to all county responsible individuals, as identified in the SCC-county contract, on Aug. 22, 2023.
Project funding is open!
SCC received an additional $3 million in capital funds for the 2023-35 biennium. SCC is committed to supporting private landowner’s voluntary stewardship of natural resources through VSP.
This capital funding provides an opportunity for on-the-ground conservation projects that protect the five critical areas (including salmon habitat) while maintaining agricultural viability.
Projects awarded with this funding must be completed by June 30, 2025.
Proposals must:
- Meet a VSP county work plan goal or benchmark
- Be in a VSP watershed
- Seek to address salmon habitat resource needs/impacts
- Use Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) standards and specifications
- Be approved prior to submittal by the county VSP work group.
- Meet the criteria set out in the VSP Guidelines.
About the process
- All proposals must be entered into the SCC’s CPDS system to be considered for funding. For CPDS assistance, please contact Brian Cochrane.
- Those who submit projects for funding must be trained in SCC’s grants and contracts procedures. Questions about this training should be directed to Nicole Boyes, VSP Contracts Manager, at nboyes@scc.wa.gov or by phone at (564) 669-3149.
- Proposals will be considered monthly on the first Tuesday of the month.
- Notice of successful funding awards can take up to 3-5 business days (or more during heavy fiscal times like end-of-year close-out) to reach project applicants. Please see the Capital Funding Review Committee Schedule for details.
- At the SCC May commission meeting, the commission supported an increase in the landowner cost-share cap in the 2023-25 biennium from $50,000 to $100,000 (for all SCC cost-share programs combined). Details in updated SCC Grant and Contract Policy and Procedure Manual.
- Please make sure the correct contact person and email is listed in CPDS for the project and that the contact person is someone at either the county or the conservation district, and not the landowner.
- Check out tips for successful VSP project proposals.
Examples of projects
Examples of funded proposals have included projects such as: waste transfer, pumping plants, fencing, heavy-use areas, waste storage facilities, riparian forest buffers, trails and walkways, roof runoff structures, sprinkler systems, access control, irrigation system/micro irrigation, livestock pipelines, tree/shrub site preparation, wetland enhancements, livestock water facilities, drainage ditch coverings, and more.
Capital funds continue to be available for VSP cost-share projects that meet VSP Capital Funding Guidelines. The capital funding review committee meets the first Tuesday of each month.
Recently, there has been some confusion as to when cost-share projects need to be completely and accurately put into the SCC’s Conservation Practice Data System (CPDS) in order for the project to be scored by the committee that month. SCC has created the following project submittal deadline table linked below. The full table is also added to the Capital Funding Guidelines and available on the VSP cost-share webpage.
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Financial updates and resources
SCC agency-wide cost-share reminders that apply to VSP
Any county, or the TSP acting on their behalf, must follow SCC cost-share policies and procedures if they want to access VSP capital funding for cost-share projects. If a county or TSP is unfamiliar with SCC cost-share policies and procedures, please contact SCC financial staff for training. SCC financial staff would like to remind counties and their TSPs of a few items related to SCC cost-share policies and procedures. If a county is unfamiliar with a SCC regional manager, those persons are listed here. Those items are set out below.
Contract for cost share: Updating the funding page
If for some unforeseen reason, you need to update the funding page on the Contract for Cost Share after it has been signed by the landowner and approved by the board, the district will need to work with their Regional Manager (RM) to update the Contract for Cost Share. Once the RM approves the changes, these steps need to be followed:
- Update CPDS with the revised funding amounts per BMP.
- Reprint the funding page of the Contract for Cost Share.
- Both the technician and the landowner must sign and date the updated funding page of the Contract for Cost Share.
Please reach out to Courtney Woods or your Regional Manager with any questions.
Landowner timesheets
An Individual Contributed Services form is required for any landowner or person contributing to the project. All Individual Contributed Services forms must be filled out monthly and be signed and dated by the individual. The hourly work must also be broken out by BMP and/or the equipment hours must be tracked separately from the normal labor hours.
Partial and final payments on cost share
A conservation district or entity may request reimbursement for a partial payment of cost share from SCC for BMPs included in the Contract for Cost Share Funds or programmatic specific contract that are implemented in phases. A partial payment request can only be submitted when one or more BMPs on the Contract for Cost Share Funds are fully completed and there are other BMPs in the contract still being worked on. Only the fully completed BMP(s) will be reimbursed. Partially completed BMPs aren’t eligible for reimbursement until they have been completed per NRCS specifications.
Partial cost share reimbursement requests to SCC must include a copy of the Cost Share Partial Payment Request Form, the Contract for Cost Share Funds or grant specific contract, appropriate receipts, Cost Share Detail Receipt Worksheet, and be included on a voucher for payment.
When a district has completed all of the BMPs for a project and has utilized the Partial Payment form for previous reimbursement on the project, a Final Payment request from must be submitted with the final billing. The Contract for Cost Share must also be submitted with all required signatures on the signature page of the contract.
Appendix B: Detail receipt form
The Detail Receipt Form is used to summarize all of the costs associated with the cost share.
- Labor is summarized in the top portion and is used for participant labor only. This must be accompanied by the Individual Contributed Services Form.
- Material are summarized in the bottom portion. All receipts from the cost share must be listed and included for backup when submitting reimbursement.
- The district’s or entity’s cost share percentage will go in the “% Charged” gray section. It will auto-sum the total amount to be reimbursed.
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One form is required to be filled out for each BMP that reimbursement is being requested for. This is required to ensure each BMP is not exceeding the awarded amount per BMP.
DIPs in VSP: Only for CDs
District-Implemented Projects or “DIPs” are projects that only a conservation district (CDs) can implement. If a VSP county has a TSP agreement with a CD, then a DIP may be an option for cost-share projects.
Want to learn more? Check out the DIP webinar!
CDs that want to pursue DIPs on behalf of their VSP county should contact their regional manager for more information on DIPs. As long as the VSP Capital Funding Guidelines, the SCC’s Grant and Contract Policy and Procedure Manual, and the provisions in the SCC-County VSP contract related to DIPs are abided by, DIPs can be used.
Please refer to section 3.3 District Implemented Projects in the contract:
The COUNTY may choose to offer a District Implemented Projects (DIP) program to achieve the goals and objectives of the county work plan. If the COUNTY so chooses to offer a DIP program using funds provided under this contract, the COUNTY hereby agrees that COMMISSION DIP policies and procedures as outlined in the Grant and Contract Procedure Manual will be abided by, regardless of who is administering the DIP program (the COUNTY or some other entity on behalf of the COUNTY). Further, the COUNTY must be in compliance with APPENDIX C – BILLING PROCEDURE and must also:
- Consult with COMMISSION STAFF identified in APPENDIX C – BILLING PROCEDURE, prior to using VSP funds for a DIP program,
- Provide written documentation that the county work group has approved the DIP program,
- Receive training regarding COMMISSION DIP policies and procedures, from COMMISSION STAFF identified in APPENDIX C – BILLING PROCEDURE, prior to using VSP funds for a DIP program, unless COUNTY staff or the entity or entities administering a DIP program have already received such training from the COMMISSION,
- VSP DIP projects that are funded using any amount of COMMISSION VSP funds shall be documented in the Conservation Practice Database System (CPDS) under RCW 36.70A.720 (2) (b) (i) and (c) (i), and
- Execute a Landowner Agreement with any DIP participating landowner.
Please contact your Regional Manager with any questions about DIPs.
Billing and vouchering FAQ updated
SCC has updated the VSP Billing and Vouchering FAQ to reflect SCC billing, cost share, and other agency policies and procedures that affect VSP. Two of the updates are set out below but please see the FAQ for all the information:
- Training: SCC will reimburse expenses for up to two staff or work group (WG) members per fiscal year to attend VSP trainings put on by SCC. Trainings and conferences not put on by SCC for staff responsible for VSP implementation will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- Prior approval in writing by SCC is required prior to any costs being incurred, or the costs will not be reimbursed.
- Each county WG must also provide prior approval of training or conference costs during an open public meeting.
- Costs for training shall not exceed $2,000 annually, per fiscal year, for each VSP contract.
- Please contact Nicole Boyes at SCC for written authorization approval. Request for approval must include a justification of how the training is directly related to implementation activities of the VSP work plan.
- Equipment purchases over $2,000 will be considered on a case-by-case basis. See the Manual for specifics. These costs need to be directly related to VSP implementation. Submit equipment purchase requests to Nicole Boyes at SCC using this form.
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SCC Grant and Contract Policy and Procedure Manual effective July 1, 2023
At the May 18, 2023, commission meeting, commissioners approved changes to the SCC Grant and Contract Policy and Procedure Manual (Manual).
Changes that went into effect on July 1:
- The following stand-alone policies will sunset and be rolled into the Manual as our financial policy and guidance document:
- 13-05 Cost Share Policy
- 13-25 CD Category 3
- 15-01 Cash Advance Payment Policy
- Another change includes an increase in the cost share limit from $50,000 per landowner per fiscal year to $100,000 per landowner per fiscal year (across all SCC programs).
- There is also an entire chapter added about District Implemented Projects (DIPs). Also a DIP webinar can be found here.
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VSP equipment purchase request form
SCC has created a form for counties and technical service providers to use when purchasing equipment valued at over $2,000 with VSP funds.
Monitoring equipment: If a county or TSP wants to purchase monitoring equipment, and if the purchase is over $2,000, they must also use the VSP equipment purchase request form. See specific monitoring expense guidelines here.
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DAHP heritage barn grant applications open Sept. 1
The Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation (DAHP) will once again seek grant applications to support rehabilitation of historic barns across the state.
Barns must be listed or eligible for listing in the state’s Heritage Barn Register. Application materials will be available beginning Friday, Sept. 1.
If you or someone you know owns a historic barn that needs rehabilitation work, DAHP encourages you to apply!
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Farmers to be reimbursed for compost expenses in new WSDA program
The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) is launching the Compost Reimbursement Program to encourage on-farm compost use. Approximately $1 million will be distributed annually on a first-come, first-served basis.
WSDA anticipates accepting applications beginning in September. But producers can sign up now to be notified once the application period opens.
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Conservation Program Explorer tool and check out monitoring resources library!
The Conservation Program Explorer is a web-based tool designed by the Cascades to Coast Landscape Collaborative to help state agencies, landowners, and conservation partners quickly discover which incentive programs are available for conservation work on agricultural and forest land.
The incentive programs span across government and non-government organizations. It’s truly a one-of-a-kind tool.
Also, the Cascades to Coast Landscape Collaborative have also developed mapping tools (Coastal Northwest Landscape Conservation Mapper) that elucidate priorities for habitat connectivity, conservation goals (with supporting data), and ecosystem services.
This tool, among many others, is also in the VSP Monitoring Resource Library.
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Upcoming Virtual Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework (ACPF) Technical Training
This free course will teach participants how to download the ACPF toolbox and the core data and run the terrain analysis tools on a sample watershed. Learners will work through the online ACPF training independently, practice running the tools, and troubleshoot issues with peers and instructors.
The course is 7 weeks in length and will run from Sept. 21 to Nov. 2, 2023. Space is limited so make sure to book your spot today! Intermediate GIS experience is required.
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March 7: SCC District Implemented Project (DIP) Webinar
WA State Conservation Commission (SCC) finance staff, supported by regional managers, lead a training and Q&A about conservation district Cost Share and District Implementation Projects (DIP).
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May 4: VSP Training 101
This webinar was tailored toward new VSP staff responsible for tasks like implementation, contracts, processing expense vouchers, cost-share, monitoring, adaptive management, outreach, education, and reporting.
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May 16: SCC-County Contract for 2023-35 Biennium Budget Webinar
The webinar reviewed the new contract for the 2023-25 biennial budget between VSP counties and SCC, provided a template that a VSP sub-contractor/technical service provider might use when contracting with a VSP county for implementation, and summarized the budget for the 2023-25 biennium, including timelines, vouchering, deliverables, responsible parties, and other items.
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May 30: Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework (ACPF) & Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP)
This webinar introduced and summarized lessons learned and best practices from multiple watershed scale monitoring efforts conducted by CEAP across the US; and approaches and frameworks used by the ACPF to assist conservation districts, NRCS staff, and other partners with planning, prioritization, monitoring, and outreach at the nexus of agriculture and ecosystems.
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June 15: SSB 5353: Information for non-VSP counties
SCC hosted a webinar on June 15 designed for county commissioners, county staff, and conservation district staff of non-VSP counties, this webinar focused on the process of opting into VSP.
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July 13: Joint TP and SAC meeting
This meeting focused on presentations from Ferry, Pend Oreille, and Spokane counties.
Throughout 2023, Joint VSP Technical Panel (TP) and Statewide Advisory Committee (SAC) meetings have been online and in person at a central location for presenting counties. All county work groups, CDs, and interested stakeholders are welcome to attend. Catch the last scheduled Joint meeting of 2023 in Pullman!
Oct. 12, 2023, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Pullman and online
See agenda here
Physical location: USDA-NRCS Pullman Plant Materials Center, 4900 SE Terre View Drive, Pullman, WA 99163
Online: Zoom link
Meeting ID: 823 4604 9516
Passcode: 883387
Counties presenting: Garfield, Whitman, Stevens, Lincoln, Columbia, Walla Walla, Franklin, Benton, and Asotin.
Meeting format:
- Presentations from the specific list of counties.
- Time on the agenda for each presenting county will serve as a check-in with the TP and SAC as the county prepares for their next 5-yr report.
- A presenting county is invited to participate however they prefer, including, but not limited to a conversation with the TP and SAC, a presentation by the county (with or without PowerPoint) or a virtual tour of county VSP projects.
Time set aside on the agenda for specific counties is not the only time that a county can attend or communicate with the TP and SAC.
Background
Counties are free to attend, or not attend, these meetings, and are free to bring whatever issues they want to bring to the TP and SAC for dialogue. Issues might include monitoring, data collection, five-year report data entry, outreach and education, etc.
The time on the agenda for each county will serve as a “check-in” for each county with the SAC and TP as they prepare their next five-year report. The concept for this dialogue time for each county is that each county would have a dedicated time to meet with the TP and SAC on an on-going basis. The purpose of this meeting is to reinforce the communications, focused primarily on issues related to the next five-year report, between the state agencies on the TP, counties, county work groups, and technical service providers and the stakeholders represented on the SAC.
This schedule does not replace communications that are on-going between any VSP entities at the local or state level, but to provide a dedicated “check-in” opportunity for any county that wants to make use of it. Subject to availability, any county may present any issue at the Joint Meeting. Counties are welcome to inquire about time on the agenda.
In the 2023-25 biennial budget, the Legislature funded VSP at the same level of operating budget as before, but also included additional operating and capital funding.
Implementation funding
SCC has allocated $240,000 to each county for the 2023-25 biennium to be used for VSP implementation, an increase of $5,000 from the last biennium. Funding for counties to continue VSP implementation remains available as we transition from one biennium to the next.
SCC-County contracts
SCC sent the 2023-25 contract and cover letter by email only on June 9, 2023, to each person listed as the responsible individual for last year’s SCC-county VSP contract. SCC also sent the contract and cover letter by email to technical service providers (TSP) that implement VSP on behalf of the county.
If you are responsible for VSP implementation in your county, and you or your county did not receive the email, please email Nicole Boyes immediately (564-669-3149) to remain eligible to be reimbursed for VSP expenses.
Monitoring funding available
Some of the additional funds the legislature made available to the SCC for VSP are designated for monitoring efforts. The allocation for each county for the entire biennium comes to $47,000.
During May and June 2023, SCC sought feedback and input from VSP counties, TSPs, and conservation districts (CDs) as to what monitoring-related activities those funds could be used for. After reviewing feedback, SCC has created Monitoring Expenses Guidelines (Guidelines) that set parameters for the use of monitoring funds. The process to access those funds will be as follows:
- Monitoring equipment: If a county or TSP wants to purchase monitoring equipment, and if the purchase is over $2,000, they must use the VSP Equipment Purchase Request Form. See form for additional requirements. The form has been modified so that the county (or TSP) must assert that, if they are purchasing monitoring equipment, it meets the definition set forth in the Monitoring Expenses Guidelines and that the purchase is directly related to the monitoring activities and/or monitoring plan of the VSP work group.
- Other monitoring activities: If a county or TSP wants to undertake any of the following other monitoring activities, there is no additional form to fill out, however see reimbursement process below.
- Creating a monitoring plan, conducting monitoring, and analyzing and reporting on monitoring, either by the county or the county’s TSP.
- Monitoring training.
- Hiring a consultant to create a monitoring plan, conduct monitoring, or to analyze and report on monitoring.
- Reimbursement process for other monitoring activities:
- SCC will send a contract amendment to each of the 27 VSP counties requiring the use of the $47,000 for monitoring purposes.
- Counties or TSPs will need to review the guidelines to ensure compliance before vouchering for eligible expenses and make sure that SCC has their VSP implementation budget on file with the $47,000 line item in it to voucher for monitoring expenses out of that $47,000.
- Counties or TSPs will voucher monitoring expenses under the VSP Contract Outcome number in their contract amendment.
- Eligible monitoring expenses and ineligible costs are set out in the guidelines. SCC financial staff will review vouchers for eligible expenses. Ineligible expenses on vouchers will be denied.
For questions, please contact Nicole Boyes (564-669-3149) or Bill Eller (509-385-7512).
If you are interested in the specific funding status of a particular VSP county, please contact that county directly.
Please review your county's main contact person and information on the VSP website. For updates, please send the updated contact name and contact information to Sarah Wilcox.
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SCC has transitioned VSP to a new website! Check it out at www.vsp.wa.gov. Please let Sarah Wilcox know if you have any questions or difficulties.
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SCC has transitioned VSP to a new website! Check it out at www.vsp.wa.gov. Please let Sarah Wilcox know if you have any questions or difficulties.
SCC is excited to offer a VSP calendar tool to share meetings and events. Depending on your software, you may need to "turn on calendar" or drag/copy meetings over to your calendar.
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Not a newsletter subscriber?
Sign up here and choose the subscription for the “Voluntary Stewardship Program (VSP)” under the Programs and Policy tab.
If you have any questions please contact Bill Eller or Sarah Wilcox.
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Copyright 2023 - Washington State Conservation Commission |
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