Strategic Plan

The Chesapeake Bay Program’s 2027–2033 Strategic Plan will describe how our partners will work together to achieve the goals, outcomes and targets of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement. It will highlight the challenges and factors affecting our work, the state and federal programs contributing to our shared goals, and the management approaches we will undertake to address challenges and fill gaps. The Strategic Plan will also describe how we will monitor, assess and report progress.

How will the plan work?

The Strategic Plan will provide a roadmap for coordinated action, accountability and adaptive management across the partnership. It will explain how we will work together to address challenges, fill gaps, track progress and adapt our approach over time.

Six-year Management Strategies

The Strategic Plan will contain four six-year management strategies: one for each of the Watershed Agreement’s four goals. Each management strategy will describe our approach for monitoring and making progress toward the outcomes within that goal, including our means for accomplishing each outcome and its targets.

Three-year Workplans

Workplans are not part of the Strategic Plan, but are separate supporting documents that will describe the specific, near-term activities partners will undertake to implement our management approaches. They will cover one- to three-year periods, and will identify resource needs and anticipated deliverables. Workplans will be approved by Chesapeake Bay Program goal teams, and will not be released for public feedback.

Ongoing Evaluations

To ensure the effectiveness of both management strategies and workplans, the partnership will conduct three types of evaluations over the course of the Strategic Plan’s six-year cycle: annual check-ins, workplan reviews and an independent strategy and program evaluation. Workplan reviews will be conducted every three years, while strategy and program evaluations will be conducted every six years. Learn more in Chapter Seven of the Governance & Management Framework.

How is the plan being developed?

The Strategic Plan is being developed by Chesapeake Bay Program goal teams, workgroups and action teams, with input from partners and the public. A public feedback period is scheduled for January 5–31, 2027. Input received during the public feedback period will be thoughtfully considered and integrated, where appropriate, into the Strategic Plan in early 2027. The final Strategic Plan is expected to be approved by the Policy Steering Committee in June 2027.

While the Strategic Plan will primarily be written for the Chesapeake Bay Program partners who will collaborate on its implementation, an Executive Summary will provide a plain-language overview to help the public and others understand how the partnership is working toward its shared goals.