SJR55 Summary

• Urges Alabama's Congressional delegation to reauthorize the Farm Bill's Conservation Title while reducing federal spending and maintaining conservation funding that prioritizes working lands.

• Emphasizes that Conservation Title programs cost-effectively protect soil, water, and natural resources essential to agriculture, forestry sustainability, and rural hunting and fishing opportunities through voluntary partnerships between USDA and private landowners.

• Cites that farm and farm-related employment includes approximately 24 million jobs; forest management industries produce about $175 billion in annual products and employ nearly 900,000 people; and hunting, angling, and wildlife recreation contribute $122 billion annually to the national economy.

• Notes U.S. agricultural exports exceeded $137 billion in 2011 with a $42 billion farm trade surplus, representing one of the few economic bright spots at that time.

• Resolution passed by Alabama Senate on March 22, 2012 and House of Representatives on April 5, 2012.