USDA Offers Disaster Recovery Assistance to Agricultural Producers in Texas Impacted by Recent Flooding

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Texas, May 28, 2024 - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has technical and financial assistance offered to help farmers and livestock producers across Texas recover from recent flooding. Impacted producers need to contact their regional USDA Service Center to report losses and discover more about program options available to help in their recovery from crop, land, facilities, and animals losses and damages.

USDA Disaster Recovery Assistance

Producers who experience animals deaths in excess of regular mortality might be qualified for the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP). To take part in LIP, manufacturers will have to provide appropriate documents of death losses resulting from an eligible unfavorable weather occasion and must submit a notification of loss to the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) no behind the annual program payment application date, which is 60 calendar days following the calendar year in which the loss occurred. The LIP payment application and notice of loss deadline is March 3, 2025, for 2024 fiscal year losses.

Meanwhile, the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) offers qualified producers with payment for feed and grazing losses. For ELAP, manufacturers are needed to finish a notice of loss and a payment application to their regional FSA office no behind Jan. 30, 2025, for 2024 fiscal year losses.

Additionally, qualified orchardists, vintners and nursery tree growers might be eligible for cost-share support through the Tree Assistance Program (TAP) to replant or fix up qualified trees, bushes or vines. TAP complements the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) or crop insurance coverage, which covers the crop but not the plants or trees in all cases. For TAP, a program application must be filed within 90 days of the disaster occasion or the date when the loss of the trees, bushes or vines is evident.

"Staff at your local FSA county workplace will link you with the programs finest suited to fulfill your requirements based on your reported losses or damages," stated Kelly Adkins, State Executive Director for FSA in Texas. "To assist us help you, please be prepared to supply documents, such as farm records, herd stock, invoices and pictures of damages or losses, and report damages and losses as quickly as you have the ability to assess catastrophe effect on your operation."

FSA also uses a variety of direct and ensured farm loans, consisting of operating and emergency situation farm loans, to producers unable to protect commercial funding. Depending on program financing schedule, manufacturers in counties with a primary or adjoining catastrophe classification may be qualified for low-interest emergency loans to help them recuperate from production and physical losses. Loans can help manufacturers change vital residential or commercial property, purchase inputs like animals, equipment, feed and seed, cover family living expenses or re-finance farm-related financial obligations and other needs. Additionally, FSA offers several loan servicing choices readily available for borrowers who are unable to make scheduled payments on their farm loan programs debt to the company since of reasons beyond their control.

Producers who have risk protection through federal crop insurance or FSA's NAP should report crop damage to their crop insurance coverage agent or FSA workplace, respectively. If they have crop insurance coverage, producers ought to offer a notice of loss to their agent within 72 hours of preliminary discovery of damage and follow up in writing within 15 days.

For NAP covered crops, a Notification of Loss (CCC-576) kind must be submitted within 15 days of the loss ending up being apparent, except for hand-harvested crops, which ought to be reported within 72 hours.

"Because there is constantly the possibility of losses from floods and other natural catastrophes, USDA uses crop insurance coverage and danger management to help manufacturers alleviate the financial effect of losses resulting from disaster events, like these, that are beyond their control," said James Bellmon, Director of RMA's Regional Office that covers Texas. "Our agents, loss adjusters, and Approved Insurance Providers are prepared to support you through the tough catastrophe recovery process."

FSA's Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) can help landowners with monetary and technical assistance to eliminate particles from farmland such as woody product, sand, rock and materials from collapsed hoop houses/high tunnels on cropland or pastureland. Through the program, FSA can supply help toward the repair or replacement of fences consisting of livestock cross fences, border fences, cattle gates or wildlife exclusion fences on farming land.

USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is always readily available to offer technical support throughout the recovery procedure by assisting producers to prepare and execute conservation practices on farms, ranches and working forests impacted by natural catastrophes. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) can help manufacturers plan and carry out preservation practices on land affected by natural disasters.

NRCS also administers the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program, which provides support to city government sponsors with the expense of resolving watershed disabilities or dangers such as debris elimination and streambank stabilization. The EWP Program is a recovery effort focused on eliminating imminent hazards to life and residential or commercial property brought on by floods, fires, windstorms and other natural catastrophes. All tasks must have a qualified job sponsor. NRCS may bear up to 75% of the qualified building cost of emergency procedures (90% within county-wide limited-resource areas as identified by the U.S. Census data). The staying costs need to originate from local sources and can be in the type of cash or in-kind services.

EWP is designed for installation of healing measures to protect life and residential or commercial property as a result of a natural catastrophe. Threats that the EWP Program addresses are termed watershed problems. These consist of, but are not restricted to:

- Debris-clogged waterways.
- Unstable streambanks.
- Severe erosion jeopardizing public facilities.
- Wind-borne particles elimination.

Eligible sponsors consist of cities, counties, towns or any federally acknowledged Native American tribe or tribal organizations. Sponsors must have the ability to provide the regional building and construction share, obtain licenses and site access and concur to carry out operations and maintenance of the built jobs. Willing sponsors should submit an official request (by mail or e-mail) to the state conservationist for help within 60 days of the natural disaster incident or 60 days from the date when access to the sites appear. To find out more, possible sponsors ought to contact their local NRCS office.

"NRCS can be a very valuable partner to assist neighborhoods with their healing efforts," stated Kristy Oates, NRCS State Conservationist in Texas. "Emergency Watershed Protection assists safeguard neighborhoods from additional damage and dangers to life and residential or commercial property triggered by the impacts of flooding in watersheds. We can deal with a regional sponsor to help cover the expenses of debris removal and other catastrophe mitigation. Our staff will deal with communities to make evaluations of the damages and develop methods that concentrate on reliable healing of the land."

Additional USDA disaster assistance details can be found on farmers.gov, including USDA resources particularly for producers impacted by flooding. Those resources consist of the Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool, Disaster-at-a-Glance reality sheet and Loan Assistance Tool. For FSA and NRCS programs, producers need to contact their local USDA Service Center. For support with a crop insurance coverage claim, producers and landowners need to contact their crop insurance agent.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans every day in many favorable ways. In the Biden-Harris administration, USDA is changing America's food system with a greater focus on more resistant regional and local food production, fairer markets for all manufacturers, making sure access to safe, healthy and healthy food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers utilizing climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic financial investments in facilities and tidy energy abilities in rural America, and dedicating to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To find out more, go to www.usda.gov.