Higher commodity price expectations have led to increases in cash lease rates nationwide. This study evaluates the farm level impacts of higher cash lease rates. Current levels of cash rents along with land tenure arrangements of specific farms are instrumental in determining the impacts of...

Many groups have discussed with alarm the impact of agricultural land conversion to non-agricultural uses. This research indicates little evidence that beef cow inventory has been negatively affected by land fragmentation. Average acres per transaction, total transactions, or a fragmentation...

This report analyzes whether H.R. 2646 may provide economic incentives for landlords to end current land tenure arrangements with tenants and take over management (and government payments) associated with their land. This work is a followup to Briefing Paper 01-9, Representative Farm Analysis of...

The continued decline in the availability of water from the Ogallala Aquifer has led to an increased interest in conservation policies designed to extend the life of the aquifer to sustain rural economies in the Texas Panhandle. This study evaluates the effectiveness of five policies in terms of...

Nonagricultural factors impact land values to cause a divergence of discounted cash rents for agricultural land and land values. Focus is given to the portion of land values attributable to discounted cash rents. Unique characteristics for cropland and pasture lead to differences in...

According to the Executive Order 12866, a qualitative and quantitative assessment for any Federal mandate resulting in annual expenditures of $100 million or more is required. This study determines how many of the approximately 34.5 million acres of CRP land is brought back in economic use, how...

Natural amenities like green open space are a valuable resource to support quality of life and public health. However, limited studies have analyzed the relationship between such resources and specific indicators of public health. We investigate the relationship between natural green space and...

We seek to determine if the tax-based payment approach is a valid alternative to existing incentive payment approaches for forest carbon sequestration. To achieve the objective, we test a hypothesis that waiving the property tax rate on forestland provides incentives to landowners for...

Playas are small wetlands, averaging 14 acres in area, which periodically fill with rainwater and evaporate, and are not connected to any other body of surface water. On the Texas High Plains, the roughly 17,000 existing playas are a source of recharge for the Ogallala aquifer and the greatest...

Climate change, coupled with biofuels development and other factors may well be changing US land usage patterns. We use a spatial econometric approach to estimate the drivers of US land use transitions in recent years. We consider transitions between six major land uses: agricultural land,...