USDA FARM SERVICE AGENCY COUNTY COMMITTEE NOMINATION PERIOD BEGAN JUNE 15 The nomination period for the Marshall/Bedford/Moore County Farm Service Agency (FSA) committee began Sunday, June 15, 2014. The elections this year will be held in Land Administrative Areas 3 and 5. LAA 3 is located in the southern part of Marshall County, encompassing the Belfast, Cornersville, Delina, and Petersburg communities. LAA 5 is located in Northeastern Bedford County, and includes the communities of Bell Buckle, Beech Grove, Normandy, and Wartrace.
To be eligible to serve on an FSA county committee, a person must participate or cooperate in a program administered by FSA, be eligible to vote in a county committee election and reside in the local administrative area where the person is nominated.
Farmers and ranchers may nominate themselves or others. Organizations representing minorities and women also may nominate candidates. To become a candidate, an eligible individual must sign the nomination form, FSA-669A. The form and other information about FSA county committee elections are available at www.fsa.usda.gov/elections. Nomination forms for the 2014 election must be postmarked or received in the local USDA Service Center by close of business on Aug. 1, 2014. Elections will take place this fall.
While FSA county committees do not approve or deny farm ownership or operating loans, they make decisions on disaster and conservation programs, emergency programs, commodity price support loan programs and other agricultural issues. Members serve three-year terms.
Nationwide, there are about 7,800 farmers and ranchers serving on FSA county committees. Committees consist of three to 11 members that are elected by eligible producers.
FSA will mail ballots to eligible voters beginning Nov. 3, 2014. Ballots are due back to the Marshall/Bedford/Moore County office either via mail or in person by Dec. 1, 2014. Newly elected committee members and alternates take office on Jan. 1, 2015. USDA ANNOUNCES RESTART OF THE BIOMASS CROP ASSISTANCE PROGRAM The Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) was reauthorized by the 2014 Farm Bill and will resume on a limited basis on June 9th, 2014 upon the publication of a Notice of Funding Availability.
BCAP employs three types of biomass assistance primarily through approved BCAP project areas. For growing new biomass, BCAP provides financial assistance with 50 percent of the cost of establishing a perennial crop. To maintain the crop as it matures until harvest, BCAP provides an annual payment for up to 5 years for herbaceous crops, or up to 15 years for woody crops. To collect existing agriculture or forest residues that are not economically retrievable, BCAP provides assistance with mitigating the cost of harvesting and transporting the materials to the end-use facility.
The 2014 Farm Bill authorizes $25 million annually for BCAP, requiring between 10 and 50 percent of the total funding to be used for harvest and transportation of biomass residues. Traditional food and feed crops are ineligible for assistance. The 2014 Farm Bill also enacted several modifications for BCAP, including higher incentives for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, and narrower biomass qualifications for matching payments, among other changes.
Only the matching payments portion of the BCAP, with narrower biomass qualifications, will resume this summer. Additional information will be provided as the updated BCAP regulations and policies are implemented. With the 2014 Farm Bill requiring several regulatory updates to BCAP, the resumption of establishment and annual payments has been deferred until a later date.
For forest residues, this year's matching payments are targeted for energy generation while reducing fire, insect and disease threats on Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management lands. Agriculture residues for energy are also eligible for matching payments.
The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA), which administers BCAP, will coordinate the BCAP enrollments. For more information on BCAP and other FSA programs, visit the Marshall/Bedford/Moore County FSA office or go online to www.fsa.usda.gov. USDA AWARDING $6 MILLION TO PREPARE FARMERS FOR NEW FARM BILL PROGRAMS: PERIOD BEGINS JUNE 15 USDA is awarding $6 million to universities and cooperative state extension services to develop online decision tools and other materials and train experts to educate producers about several key farm bill programs. The new Web tools will help farmers and ranchers determine what participation in programs established by the 2014 Farm Bill will mean for their businesses.
The University of Illinois (lead for the National Coalition for Producer Education), along with the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri and the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M (co-leads for the National Association of Agricultural and Food Policy), will receive a total of $3 million to develop the new online tools and train state-based extension agents who can in turn help educate farmers.
The new resources will help farmers and ranchers make an educated choice between the new Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) program and the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) program. Using the new online tools, producers will be able to use data unique to their specific farming operations combined with factors like the geographical diversity of crops, soils, weather and climates across the country to test a variety of financial scenarios before officially signing up for the new program options later this year. Once a producer enrolls in the ARC or PLC program, he or she must remain in the program through the 2018 crop year.
New tools will be provided for other programs as well. Sign-up for the newly established Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP) begins late this summer and enrollment for "buy-up" provisions under the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) will begin early next year. An online MPP tool will be available when sign up begins and the NAP buy-up provision resource will become available to producers in the fall for the 2015 crop year.
USDA will also award $3 million to state cooperative extension services—a nationwide network of experts based at land-grant universities—for outreach and education on the new Farm Bill programs. Funds will be used to conduct public education outreach meetings where producers can speak with local extension agents and Farm Service Agency (FSA) staff. Outreach meetings will begin late this summer to help farmers and ranchers understand the new programs and their options.
While universities work to create new online tools, producers now have access to a preliminary website that gives them a chance to begin familiarizing themselves with the new programs and the type of information they will need to consider when deciding which program options work better for them. At this site, farmers and ranchers can view ARC and PLC projected payments, ARC guarantees, and PLC payment rate projections. These tables are available on the FSA website.
Visit www.fsa.usda.gov or the Marshall/Bedford/Moore County FSA office for information about FSA and the 2014 Farm Bill programs. SELECTED JUNE 2014 INTEREST RATES 90-Day Treasury Bill 0.250% Farm Operating Loans — Direct 2.250% Farm Ownership Loans — Direct 4.00% Farm Ownership Loans — Direct Down Payment 1.50%
Beginning Farmer or Rancher Direct Farm Ownership - Joint Financing 2.50% Emergency Loans 3.250% Farm Storage Facility Loans (7 years) 2.250% Commodity Loans 1996-Present 1.125% SPECIAL ACCOMMODATIONS Special accommodations will be made upon request for individuals with disabilities, vision impairment or hearing impairment. If accommodations are required, individuals should contact the county FSA office staff directly or by phone. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. 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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