MN SF3306

Creates a Minnesota Native Perennials Establishment Cost-Share Program under Minnesota Statutes chapter 103C, allowing the state board to allocate funds to districts for cost-sharing native perennial establishment.

Eligible land must be 5-80 acres in size, owned by the applicant or a blood relative for at least one year, have been in agricultural use or enrolled in federal/state programs for at least 4 of the last 6 years, and be located within 50 miles of a bioenergy or bioindustrial feedstock market in a local water quality priority area.

Cost-share grants cover up to 75 percent of site preparation, seeding, and related establishment costs, with plantings requiring at least 25 species including grasses, legumes, and forbs from district-verified seed sources.

Landowners must maintain native perennials for at least 15 years and follow approved operation and maintenance plans, state board native vegetation guidelines, and USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service harvesting guidelines for biomass or forage production.

Permitted land uses during the 15-year maintenance period include haying, native seed propagation, and bioenergy or bioindustrial feedstock production, with soil fertilization limited to the amount estimated to be removed by the crop.