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Hoeven Hosts Farm COVID Relief Roundtable

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North Dakota Senator John Hoeven hosted a roundtable discussion Thursday morning with state farm groups and Farm Service Agency officials on the recently passed COVID-19 legislation. There was $13 billion included in the latest relief package for agriculture, and much of that is expected to be implemented under the Biden Administration. Hoeven also outlined the new Quality Loss Adjustment program. Listen to the first portion of the question and answer session.

WHIP+ Quality Adjustment Expected in 2021

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According to the Red River Farm Network, North Dakota Senator John Hoeven expects USDA to have more details and begin the sign-up for the quality loss adjustment piece of the WHIP+ program in early January. “FSA had to get the other programs out. The good news now is there’s enough money to finish out the program.” Northern Plains farmers have been waiting for more details on the quality loss adjustment piece for months. At this time, no additional details are known.

Senate Approves Ag Appropriations Bill

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The U.S. Senate approved the Agriculture Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2020. North Dakota Senator John Hoeven, who chairs the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee, says the legislation makes sure farmers have access to risk management tools and capital. Funds for implementing the 2018 Farm Bill are a part of the bill. Also included is support for crop insurance and direct, guaranteed and emergency loans.

FSA Administrator Visits ND to Discuss MFP Payments

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USDA Farm Service Agency Administrator Richard Fordyce paid a visit to North Dakota, meeting with farmers, agriculture organizations and other state leaders. The trip was prompted by North Dakota Senator John Hoeven to discuss details of the new Market Facilitation Program payments. This was the first roundtable event for the Administrator with farmers regarding the payments.
 
Farmers are still curious as to how the county rates were determined. Fordyce said in order to get payments out sooner rather than later, USDA had to come up with a calculation that didn’t require taking a crop to harvest. “It’s based on acres of crops that were planted in that county, the average yields of those crops times a number by commodity,” said Fordyce. “For example, if there was a county that experienced a weather anomaly within the last three years, that would impact the county yield number.”
 
Hear more and read more about Fordyce’s visit.