Rounds Urges Ag Secretary to Clarify Disaster Assistance Eligibility for Producers
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins to request the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) develop a transparent set of crop insurance requirements for disaster assistance programs. This request comes after ambiguous guidance in previous programs required producers to return a portion of disaster assistance payments.
In recent years, Congress has provided billions of dollars in supplemental appropriations to USDA to fund temporary or ad hoc programs for losses not always covered under permanent programs. Because ad hoc programs respond to different natural disasters, participating producers encounter different eligibility rules and payment structures. In Phase 2 of the Emergency Reserve Program (ERP), USDA required applicants to list “all eligible yield-based crops that could have been affected by a qualifying disaster event.” As a consequence, many producers initially believed only impacted acres had to be listed on the application, leading many producers to unintentionally list an incorrect acreage amount on their application. After USDA discovered some applicants mistakenly did not list a farm’s entire acreage, the agency caused confusion by requiring these producers to return portions of ERP 2 payments.
On December 20, 2024, Congress passed additional disaster assistance to compensate producers for natural disaster losses sustained in 2023 and 2024.
“As USDA prepares to allocate additional disaster assistance, it is my hope the agency will consider the lessons of ERP 2 when preparing for the next application cycle,” Rounds wrote. “This would entail providing farmers with a transparent set of crop insurance requirements. American farmers and ranchers are the backbone of this nation and consistently deal with a number of uncontrollable factors, including extreme weather and volatile markets. Improving disaster assistance program guidelines will provide an additional certainty for American producers.”
Read the full letter HERE or below.
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Dear Secretary Rollins,
Congratulations on your recent confirmation to lead the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). I am looking forward to working with you on issues impacting South Dakota producers.
Since the founding of our nation, American producers have worked hard to help feed the world. While American farmers and ranchers continue to experience tremendous success, the agriculture sector will always face significant risk.
During the last two years, farmers across the United States have dealt with a multitude of natural disasters. This includes severe drought, flooding and derecho weather events. In response, Congress has rightfully stepped up to provide disaster assistance to farmers and ranchers. While producers are thankful for this needed disaster assistance, USDA’s ambiguous program guidance has created real problems for some farm families.
After Congress appropriated funding for Phase 2 of the Emergency Relief Program (ERP), USDA established an application process to determine producer eligibility. USDA required Phase 2 applicants to list “all eligible yield-based crops that could have been affected by a qualifying disaster event.” As a consequence, many producers initially believed only impacted acres had to be listed on the application.
These unclear administrative guidelines have created headaches for some producers. After USDA discovered some applicants mistakenly did not list a farm’s entire acreage, the agency required these producers to return ERP 2 payments. This requirement burdened producers that were already dealing with an uncertain farm economy.
As USDA prepares to allocate additional disaster assistance, it is my hope the agency will consider the lessons of ERP 2 when preparing for the next application cycle. This would entail providing farmers with a transparent set of crop insurance requirements.
American farmers and ranchers are the backbone of this nation. Our producers consistently deal with a number of uncontrollable factors, including extreme weather and volatile markets. Improving disaster assistance program guidelines will provide additional certainty for American producers.
I look forward to collaborating with you on this issue.
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