[JULY 28, 2005] CHICAGO -- After visiting drought-damaged
fields in northern and central Illinois earlier in the day, Gov. Rod
R. Blagojevich congratulated the United States Department of
Agriculture Wednesday night for designating all but one of Illinois'
102 counties as agricultural disaster areas. The governor formally
requested a disaster declaration from the federal government on
Monday for Illinois counties hit hard by this summer's drought. The
USDA's decision will allow farmers and ranchers to apply for federal
assistance. The governor applauded U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike
Johanns and the USDA for their quick response.
"Illinois farms not only supply food for communities across our
state, but also across the nation and the world," Blagojevich said.
"This designation is critical in helping Illinois farmers and
ranchers get back on track and hopefully recover from a devastating
season of low crop yield. I want to thank the USDA for their quick
action."
The decision will make all qualified farm operators eligible for
low-interest emergency loans provided by the Farm Service Agency.
Farmers in eligible counties may apply for the loans up to eight
months from the date of the declaration to cover part of their
actual losses.
In addition to the emergency loans, the USDA has made several
other programs available to assist farmers and ranchers in
recovering from damage by this year's drought, including the
Emergency Conservation Program, Federal Crop Insurance and the
Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program.
The 93 counties designated as primary disaster areas due to the
drought are Adams, Boone, Brown, Bureau, Calhoun, Carroll, Cass,
Champaign, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Coles, Cook, Crawford, Cumberland,
DeKalb, DeWitt, Douglas, DuPage, Edgar, Edwards, Effingham, Fayette,
Ford, Fulton, Gallatin, Greene, Grundy, Hamilton, Hardin, Henderson,
Henry, Iroquois, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jersey, Jo Daviess,
Johnson, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Knox, LaSalle, Lake, Lawrence,
Lee, Livingston, Logan, Macoupin, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Mason,
Massac, McDonough, McHenry, McLean, Menard, Mercer, Monroe, Morgan,
Moultrie, Ogle, Peoria, Perry, Piatt, Pike, Pope, Putnam, Randolph,
Richland, Rock Island, Saline, Sangamon, Schuyler, Scott, Shelby,
St. Clair, Stark, Stephenson, Tazewell, Vermilion, Wabash, Warren,
Washington, Wayne, White, Whiteside, Will, Williamson, Winnebago and
Woodford.
Eight other counties are also eligible because they are
contiguous: Bond, Christian, Franklin, Hancock, Macon, Montgomery,
Pulaski and Union.
For more information on the emergency loan program or other
services, farmers may contact their local USDA Service Center or
visit the USDA site at http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov.
Earlier Wednesday Blagojevich visited farm fields in Peoria and
Will counties to view damage caused by this summer's severe drought
conditions. On Monday the governor sent a letter to Johanns
requesting that all 102 Illinois counties be declared natural
disaster areas, making farmers eligible for federal disaster
assistance.
