Conservation District Funding
Wasco County SWCD, Oregon

The Wasco County Soil and Water Conservation District obtains funding from a variety of sources. During recent years funding for various projects was provided by Oregon Soil and Water Conservation Commission, Oregon Departments of Agriculture, Environmental Quality, Fish and Wildlife, and the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. Other funding sources included Wasco County, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Bonneville Power Administration, The Federal Emergency Management Agency, US Fish and Wildlife Services, NOAA Fisheries, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, American Rivers, and others and private businesses.

Administrative funding for basic staffing of conservation districts is available from very few sources. On every project we have administrative expenses of about 10% and where possible, include that in the grant. Wasco County in the past provided $6,000 per year to the district. The voters in Wasco County in November 2004 approved a permanent tax rate limit for the Conservation District. That gives the District the authority to levy up to 25 cents per thousand dollars of property tax value. Grants continue to be the major funding in the District’s annual budget but the tax levy provides a safety net to enable programs to continue even with an interruption in grant cash flow.

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