Illinois FSA September Newsletter

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[September 30, 2019]    Message from the State Executive Director - In anticipation of the upcoming harvest season, it’s important for everyone working on the farm to be well-prepared and safe.

Harvest season is a memorable time filled with hard work and family tradition, however, it can also be a dangerous time if you don’t take the proper precautionary measures.

Stay rested and don’t sacrifice your well-being for the sake of efficiency.

Take breaks, it’s important to reset and refocus from time to time.

Work during daylight hours. The more hours you put in after dark, the greater your risk of injury. Do the bulk of your work while the sun is still up.

Create a plan as simple as a safety check-in process for your family and/or team. Share how long you plan to work and set ongoing check-in times, so someone knows whether or not you’re OK.

Please keep these tips in mind to stay safe, healthy and happy on the farm and in the field.

And last but certainly not least, thank you to all producers for your daily hard work and dedication to the Illinois farming industry.


Dairy Margin Coverage Signup Ends September 27

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) reminds dairy producers that the deadline to enroll in the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program for 2019 is Sept. 27, 2019.

 


New Farmers.gov Feature Helps Producers Find Farm Loans that Fit Their Operation

A new online tool can help farmers and ranchers find information on U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) farm loans that may best fit their operations. USDA has launched the new Farm Loan Discovery Tool as the newest feature on farmers.gov, the Department’s self-service website for farmers.

USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) offers a variety of loan options to help farmers finance their operations. From buying land to financing the purchase of equipment, FSA loans can help. Compared to this time last year, FSA has seen an 18 percent increase in the amount it has obligated for direct farm ownership loans, and through the 2018 Farm Bill, has increased the limits for several loan products.

USDA conducted field research in eight states, gathering input from farmers and FSA farm loan staff to better understand their needs and challenges.

How the Tool Works

Farmers who are looking for financing options to operate a farm or buy land can answer a few simple questions about what they are looking to fund and how much money they need to borrow. After submitting their answers, farmers will be provided information on farm loans that best fit their specific needs. The loan application and additional resources also will be provided.

Farmers can download application quick guides that outline what to expect from preparing an application to receiving a loan decision. There are four guides that cover loans to individuals, entities, and youth, as well as information on microloans. The guides include general eligibility requirements and a list of required forms and documentation for each type of loan. These guides can help farmers prepare before their first USDA service center visit with a loan officer.

Farmers can access the Farm Loan Discovery Tool by visiting farmers.gov/fund and clicking the “Start” button. Follow the prompts and answer five simple questions to receive loan information that is applicable to your agricultural operation. The tool is built to run on any modern browser like Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or the Safari browser, and is fully functional on mobile devices. It does not work in Internet Explorer.

About Farmers.gov

In 2018, USDA unveiled farmers.gov, a dynamic, mobile-friendly public website combined with an authenticated portal where farmers will be able to apply for programs, process transactions, and manage accounts.

The Farm Loan Discovery Tool is one of many resources on farmers.gov to help connect farmers to information that can help their operations. Earlier this year, USDA launched the My Financial Information feature, which enables farmers to view their loan information, history, payments, and alerts by logging into the website.

USDA is building farmers.gov for farmers, by farmers. In addition to the interactive farm loan features, the site also offers a Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool. Farmers can visit farmers.gov/recover/disaster-assistance-tool#step-1 to find disaster assistance programs that can help their operation recover from natural disasters.

With feedback from customers and field employees who serve those customers, farmers.gov delivers farmer-focused features through an agile, iterative process to deliver the greatest immediate value to America’s agricultural producers – helping farmers and ranchers do right, and feed everyone.

For more information or to locate your USDA Service Center, visit farmers.gov.


CRP Participants Must Maintain Approved Cover on Acreages Enrolled in CRP and Farm Programs

 

Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) participants are responsible for ensuring adequate, approved vegetative and practice cover is maintained to control erosion throughout the life of the contract after the practice has been established. Participants must also control undesirable vegetation, weeds (including noxious weeds), insects and rodents that may pose a threat to existing cover or adversely impact other landowners in the area.

All CRP maintenance activities, such as mowing, burning, disking and spraying, must be conducted outside the primary nesting or brood rearing season for wildlife, which for Illinois is April 15 through August 1. However, spot treatment of the acreage may be allowed during the primary nesting or brood rearing season if, left untreated, the weeds, insects or undesirable species would adversely impact the approved cover. In this instance, spot treatment is limited to the affected areas in the field and requires County Committee approval prior to beginning the spot treatment. The County Committee will consult with NRCS to determine if such activities are needed to maintain the approved cover.

Annual mowing of CRP for generic weed control, or for cosmetic purposes, is prohibited at all times.


CRP Payment Limitation

Payments and benefits received under the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) are subject to the following:

  • payment limitation by direct attribution

  • foreign person rule

  • average adjusted gross income (AGI) limitation

    The 2014 Farm Bill continued the $50,000 maximum CRP payment amount that can be received annually, directly or indirectly, by each person or legal entity. This payment limitation includes all annual rental payments and incentive payments (Sign-up Incentive Payments and Practice Incentive Payments). Annual rental payments are attributed (earned) in the fiscal year in which program performance occurs. Sign-up Incentive Payments (SIP) are attributed (earned) based on the fiscal year in which the contract is approved, not the fiscal year the contract is effective. Practice Incentive Payments (PIP) are attributed (earned) based on the fiscal year in which the cost-share documentation is completed, and the producer or technical service provider certifies performance of practice completion to the county office. Such limitation on payments is controlled by direct attribution.

  • Program payments made directly or indirectly to a person are combined with the pro rata interest held in any legal entity that received payment, unless the payments to the legal entity have been reduced by the pro rata share of the person.

  • Program payments made directly to a legal entity are attributed to those persons that have a direct and indirect interest in the legal entity, unless the payments to the legal entity have been reduced by the pro rata share of the person.

  • Payment attribution to a legal entity is tracked through four levels of ownership. If any part of the ownership interest at the fourth level is owned by another legal entity, a reduction in payment will be applied to the payment entity in the amount that represents the indirect interest of the fourth level entity in the payment entity. Essentially, all payments will be “attributed” to a person’s Social Security Number. Given the current CRP annual rental rates in many areas, it is important producers are aware of how CRP offered acreages impact their $50,000 annual payment limitation. Producers should contact their local FSA office for additional information.

NOTE: The information in the above article only applies to contracts subject to 4-PL and 5-PL regulations. It does not apply to contacts subject to 1-PL regulations.


Disaster Set-Aside (DSA) Program

FSA borrowers with farms located in designated primary or contiguous disaster areas who are unable to make their scheduled FSA loan payments should consider the Disaster Set-Aside (DSA) program.

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DSA is available to producers who suffered losses as a result of a natural disaster and is intended to relieve immediate and temporary financial stress. FSA is authorized to consider setting aside the portion of a payment/s needed for the operation to continue on a viable scale.

Borrowers must have at least two years left on the term of their loan in order to qualify.

Borrowers have eight months from the date of the disaster designation to submit a complete application. The application must include a written request for DSA signed by all parties liable for the debt along with production records and financial history for the operating year in which the disaster occurred. FSA may request additional information from the borrower in order to determine eligibility.

All farm loans must be current or less than 90 days past due at the time the DSA application is complete. Borrowers may not set aside more than one installment on each loan.

The amount set-aside, including interest accrued on the principal portion of the set-aside, is due on or before the final due date of the loan.

For more information, contact your local FSA farm loan office.


Breaking New Ground

Agricultural producers are reminded to consult with FSA and NRCS before breaking out new ground for production purposes as doing so without prior authorization may put a producer’s federal farm program benefits in jeopardy. This is especially true for land that must meet Highly Erodible Land (HEL) and Wetland Conservation (WC) provisions.

Producers with HEL determined soils are required to apply tillage, crop residue and rotational requirements as specified in their conservation plan.

Producers should notify FSA as a first point of contact prior to conducting land clearing or drainage type projects to ensure the proposed actions meet compliance criteria such as clearing any trees to create new cropland, then these areas will need to be reviewed to ensure such work will not risk your eligibility for benefits.

Landowners and operators complete the form AD-1026 - Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification to identify the proposed action and allow FSA to determine whether a referral to Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) for further review is necessary.


Farm Storage Facility Loans

FSA’s Farm Storage Facility Loan (FSFL) program provides low-interest financing to producers to build or upgrade storage facilities and to purchase portable (new or used) structures, equipment and storage and handling trucks.

The low-interest funds can be used to build or upgrade permanent facilities to store commodities. Eligible commodities include corn, grain sorghum, rice, soybeans, oats, peanuts, wheat, barley, minor oilseeds harvested as whole grain, pulse crops (lentils, chickpeas and dry peas), hay, honey, renewable biomass, fruits, nuts and vegetables for cold storage facilities, floriculture, hops, maple sap, rye, milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, meat and poultry (unprocessed), eggs, and aquaculture (excluding systems that maintain live animals through uptake and discharge of water). Qualified facilities include grain bins, hay barns and cold storage facilities for eligible commodities.


Loans up to $50,000 can be secured by a promissory note/security agreement and loans between $50,000 and $100,000 may require additional security. Loans exceeding $100,000 require additional security.

Producers do not need to demonstrate the lack of commercial credit availability to apply. The loans are designed to assist a diverse range of farming operations, including small and mid-sized businesses, new farmers, operations supplying local food and farmers markets, non-traditional farm products, and underserved producers.

To learn more about the FSA Farm Storage Facility Loan, visit www.fsa.usda.gov/pricesupport or contact your local FSA county office. To find your local FSA county office, visit http://offices.usda.gov.
 

Storage and Handling Trucks Eligible for Farm Storage Facility Loans

Farm Storage Facility Loans (FSFL) provide low-interest financing so producers can build or upgrade facilities to store commodities. Some storage and handling trucks are eligible for the FSFL. These include:

Cold Storage Trucks-A van or truck designed to carry perishable freight at specific temperatures. Cold storage trucks can be ice-cooled or equipped with any variety of mechanical refrigeration systems.

Flatbed Trucks-Truck with an open body in the form of a platform with no side walls for easy loading and unloading. These trucks can be categorized into different sizes which range from light, medium, or heavy duty, compact or full-size, or short and expandable beds.

Grain Trucks-A piece of farm equipment specially made to accommodate grain products and are traditionally truck chassis units with a mounted grain “dump” body where grain commodities are transported from a field to either a grain elevator or a storage bin.
Storage Trucks with a Chassis Unit-Commonly referred to as a box truck, box van or straight truck, is a truck with a cargo body mounted on the same chassis with the engine and cab.

To be eligible for FSFL, the storage and handling truck must be less than 15 years old and have a maximum of four axles with a gross weight rating of 60,000 pounds or less. Pick-up trucks, semi-trucks, dump trucks, and simple insulated and ventilated vans are ineligible for FSFL.

FSFL for storage and handling trucks must be $100,000 or less. FSFL-financed storage and handling trucks must be used for the purpose for which they were acquired for the entire FSFL term.



Eligible commodities include grains, oilseeds, pulse crops, hay, honey, renewable biomass commodities, fruits and vegetables, floriculture, hops, maple sap, milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, eggs, meat/poultry (unprocessed), rye and aquaculture.

For more information or to apply for a FSFL, contact your local FSA Service Center.


Maintaining the Quality of Farm-Stored Loan Grain

Bins are ideally designed to hold a level volume of grain. When bins are overfilled and grain is heaped up, airflow is hindered, and the chance of spoilage increases.

Producers who take out marketing assistance loans and use the farm-stored grain as collateral should remember that they are responsible for maintaining the quality of the grain through the term of the loan.


Unauthorized Disposition of Grain

If loan grain has been disposed of through feeding, selling or any other form of disposal without prior written authorization from the county office staff, it is considered unauthorized disposition. The financial penalties for unauthorized dispositions are severe and a producer’s name will be placed on a loan violation list for a two-year period. Always call before you haul any grain under loan.


September Interest Rates and Important Dates

Illinois Farm Service Agency
3500 Wabash Ave.
Springfield, IL 62711
Phone: 217-241-6600
Fax: 855-800-1760
www.fsa.usda.gov/il

State Executive Director:
William J. Graff

State Committee:
James Reed - Chairperson
Melanie DeSutter-Member
Kirk Liefer-Member
George Obernagel III-Member
Troy Uphoff-Member

To find contact information for your local office go to www.fsa.usda.gov/il

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).

 

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