Impact of Post-CRP Alternatives on Cotton Production in the Texas High Plains

Post-CRP policy will impact crop production, the level of soil erosion, and the level of governmental expenditures for agricultural programs in the Texas High Plains Region. Mathematical programming methods were used to analyze the response of CRP contract holders in Hale County, Texas to alternative post-CRP policies given as objective of profit maximization. Cotton production was estimated to increase for all specified policies, with the greatest increase occurring with the policy of no extension of the CRP. The marginal value of deficiency payments within the commodity price support programs was indicated to be greater than the marginal value of CRP payments given constrained governmental expenditures.