Whos dropped out of EQUIP?

[gjs4]

I may catch some chit for this.....but I think I am done with EQUIP. I got in , after 2+ yrs of being dog and ponied around. Way more difficult than it needed to be (back to to this in a bit). The majority of my funds were for clearing on invasives on our out of state parcel. Got a forestry plan last yr (which was great) and cleared 5 ac (during October!). The payback was about 60% of the cost on the clearing. I am supposed to be clear 10+ more ac this yr, and then spray everything this fall. The same next year.

sort of rounded a few corners here.
First- I cant stand anyone dictating anything on my place. I wanted things cleared in the summer and the program admin pushed it to fall time.
Second- The program admin ether appears focused on other things, is overworked, or just doesn't care kind of underworked. Hes also forgot to add some other discussed options/dollars, and told me i had to own it a year prior to getting in which is not true and there is always a delay on things. (And I see interns walking there every 2-3wks on cam)
Third- 60% beats nothing.. but not with what I am giving up...and it lost its incentive when I have to put everything up to the contractor....then get paid back half.
Fourth- (and here comes the hate)- I didn't buy the place to tie it, or my funds, up with invasives removal. I strive to leave everything better than I found it- and have been beating down some of the invasives on my own. I bought it for hunting and have been working there (at least) 10x more than enjoying. Ive also negated my cover, at a critical time, for this and watched the deer leave.

I know the issue is if i drop before the end of the contract,, there will be no more govnt programs for me. There is a not a penalty otherwise (and i have asked). I feel crummy doing it....but i just want a hunting piece. This isnt my forever place. Anyway...rant over.

So.....who's dumped a government incentive program?

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

I have not dropped for one simple reason, I’ll never ever not ever enroll in a government program on my land

 

[SwampCat]

Not really something like that. Bought a piece of land that had been cropland and I stopped the row cropping. The crop subsidy payment was transferred to my name on purchase of property. I told them I wanted them to discontinue the crop payments. I told them I was not going to plant ag crops for ag purposes. They said it didnt matter - it had been classified as row crop. We went back and forth awhile before they ever agreed to pull my name.

 

[Mortenson]

I'm out of all govt contracts. Won't do any more. My dad's last waterway (crp) expired and he decided last second to re-enroll the 1 acre for $300. Couldn't believe it. The 300 wasn't life or death for him, but I guess it was too good to pass up. We still rebuild and maintain waterways at our expense.

 

[goatman]

I despise them. Not for me. They even sent a person out one year one day to listen for birds. That was on the CREP program my father-in-law signed up for. They also told me that I couldn't plant oak trees that I had started from acorns without their approval. And CREP is a tree program.

 

[Lucky_P]

Almost every 'government' program I ever enrolled in cost me more than it paid... I usually had to go back and re-do things correctly 'on my own dime'.
Only bright spot was a 10-yr 100-ft wide CRP riparian bufferstrip deal back in 2000; almost a mile long, 7 acres total. At the time, we were a 'targeted watershed', and at the time I was anticipating the Feds mandating that we move fences/crops back from the creek's edge. Gave me a place to plant about 500 pecan and black walnut, with 4 spots left open for small wildlife foodplots. I'm not sure that they ever checked back to make sure that I'd fenced it off or adhered to their edicts on what to plant.