Half of Illinois Soil Districts Run on One Staffer
Forty-seven of Illinois' 97 soil and water conservation districts have only one staffer, and 21 of those single staffers serve two roles.
Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Administration
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Nearly half of Illinois' 97 soil and water conservation districts have one staffer, according to the Illinois Department of Agriculture directory. In 21 of those single-staffer districts, that one person serves two roles.
Why it matters
Each district ideally has two staffers, a resource conservationist and an administrative coordinator, to help landowners and handle applications. Funding shortfalls make it hard to keep people for long periods at competitive salaries, which affects conservation work across the state.
The Illinois Department of Agriculture directory lists 47 of 97 districts with a single staffer, and 21 of those districts have one person filling two roles. Each district received a base of $40,000 in operations money in 2026, and the extraction does not specify how staffing will change.
The players
Eliot Clay
Clay is executive director of the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and he is working with state lawmakers on strategies to boost district funding.
Sen. Koehler
Koehler, a state senator from Peoria, is working with Clay on strategies to boost funding for the districts.
The details
Illinois soil and water conservation districts generally follow county boundaries, though some serve multiple counties grouped together. Resource conservationists work in the field with landowners to match them to conservation projects, while administrative coordinators handle office work, education and application assistance.
Timeline
- 2026: Each Illinois district was allocated a base of $40,000 in operations money.
Roadmap
The Illinois directory's count of 47 single-staffer districts is the baseline against which current funding efforts are measured. Efforts led by Clay and Sen. Koehler aim to move district staffing toward the two-person structure the state intends.
Landowners seeking conservation help may find limited staff availability in districts where one person covers both field and office duties. Those districts may have slower turnaround on applications and fewer education programs.
The takeaway
Staffing levels at local conservation districts shape how quickly farmers and landowners can access programs. Watching funding decisions in Springfield will show whether the two-person model becomes more common.
Further reading
Explore more on Administration for context on how these local agencies are run.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Investigate Midwest.
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