 President Obama has called the U.S. government's approach to drought
assistance an "all-hands-on-deck effort" and has directed USDA and
other federal agencies to find additional ways to help those
affected by drought. To date, USDA has taken a wide variety of
administrative actions that Giamanco wants to be sure Illinois
farmers and ranchers know about.
First and foremost, USDA streamlined the disaster designation
process that has allowed the agency to quickly, efficiently
authorize emergency aid for producers, including Illinois, where 102
counties have been declared primary disaster areas for drought.
Earlier this summer, USDA lowered the interest rate for Farm
Service Agency emergency loans from 3.75 percent to 2.25 percent and
authorized emergency haying and grazing on additional lands enrolled
in certain USDA conservation programs. The payment reduction for
emergency haying and grazing of CRP land was also reduced from 25
percent to 10 percent.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack personally encouraged
crop insurance companies to provide a short grace period for farmers
on unpaid insurance premiums -- and all of the major crop insurance
companies have agreed to do so.
In August, it was announced that the Natural Resources
Conservation Service and Farm Service Agency are providing an
additional $30 million nationwide to help producers move emergency
water supplies and repair damaged lands.
President Obama and Vilsack traveled to Iowa to survey
drought-stricken cropland and to announce that USDA intends to
purchase up to $170 million in meat, poultry and farm-raised fish to
help deliver additional relief for livestock producers.
Recently, changes were made to the crop insurance program to
allow producers to plant cover crops this fall that can provide much
needed forage to livestock.
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The president has convened ongoing meetings of the White House
Rural Council to ensure that all federal agencies are doing
everything they can to help. For example, the Small Business
Administration has worked to increase emergency lending for small
businesses, farmers and ranchers, and the Department of
Transportation is waiving certain requirements on commercial trucks,
to get more drivers on the road in the relief effort.
According to Giamanco, the biggest challenge the president
currently faces in carrying out the relief effort is the fact that
the 2008 Farm Bill disaster assistance programs expired at the end
of last year. These programs were implemented under Obama and prior
to their expiration delivered more than 400,000 disaster assistance
payments totaling more than $4 billion to U.S. farmers and ranchers.
Giamanco says that USDA's preference remains that drought
assistance be enacted as part of a comprehensive, multiyear food,
farm and jobs bill, to ensure that the USDA has tools to keep
growing the rural economy, give more certainty to American farmers
and ranchers, and provide help to producers in need.
Giamanco encourages any farmer or rancher with questions to
contact their FSA office, because even with limited legal authority,
USDA has worked hard to offer tools to help. For the latest
information, farmers and ranchers can also visit USDA's drought
website, www.usda.gov/drought.
"As the drought continues, President Obama, Secretary Vilsack and
all of us at USDA won't stop looking for ways to help farmers and
ranchers in this difficult time," Giamanco said.
[Text from file received from
Illinois Farm Service Agency] |
