USDA Newsletter 11/21/24

US Department of Agriculture

From the desks of Shawn Wortman, FSA CED and Ryan Blackwood, NRCS DC

Dates of Importance

November 28, Offices closed in observance of Thanksgiving Day (USDA)

December 2, COC Election ballots must be returned to postmarked to be counted (FSA)

December 10, Master Beef certification, GEMC building, 402 Egg Hill Rd Alamo (UT/TSU Ext Ser)

December 11, Master Farm Manager certification, GEMC building, 402 Egg Hill Rd Alamo (UT/TSU Ext Ser)

December 13, COC election ballots counted at FSA office. (FSA)

December 16, Final date to timely report fall seeded crops, wheat, canola, and barley

December 20, Agricultural Conservation Easement Program-Wetland Reserve Easement component (ACEP-WRE) signup deadline (NRCS)

To subscribe to text message alerts, text TNGibson to FSANOW (372-669). Standard text messaging rates apply.

ELIGIBILITY FOR ELECTIONS FOR THE 2024 COUNTY COMMITTEE

Elections for USDA’s Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Gibson County Committee are underway.

It is important that every eligible producer participate in these elections because FSA county committees are a link between the agricultural community and the USDA. The 2024 election in Gibson County will be conducted for the representative Local Administrative Area (LAA-2):

From the Dyer County line, east on Old Dyersburg Rd to US Hwy 45, south on Hwy 45 to US Hwy 54, east on Hwy 54 to the Old Trenton Dresden Rd, to the Weakley County Line.

To be eligible to vote in the elections, a person must:

Meet requirement one (see explanation below) or meet requirement two, and requirement three (see explanation below).

Requirement One: Be of legal voting age and have an interest in a farm or ranch as either: an individual who meets one or more of the following; (a) is eligible to vote in one’s own right, (b) is a partner of a general partnership, (c) is a member of a joint venture OR an authorized representative of a legal entity, such as: (a) a corporation, estate, trust, limited partnership or other business enterprise, excluding general partnership and joint ventures or (b) a state, political subdivision of a state or any state agency (only the designated representative may cast a vote for the entity).

Requirement Two: Not of legal voting age but supervises and conducts the farming operations of an entire farm.

Requirement Three: Participates or cooperates in an FSA program that is provided by law.

County committee election ballots were mailed to eligible voters on November 4, 2024. The last day to return completed ballots to the USDA service center is December 2, 2024. Ballots will be counted at the FSA Office conference room, December 13, 2024 at 9:00 AM.

For more information on eligibility to serve on FSA county committees, visit: www.fsa.usda.gov/elections.

USDA Farm Loan Program Changes Now in Effect

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) long-awaited updates to the Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Farm Loan Programs are officially in effect. These changes, part of the Enhancing Program Access and Delivery for Farm Loans rule, are designed to increase financial flexibility for agricultural producers, allowing them to grow their operations, boost profitability, and build long-term savings.

These program updates reflect USDA’s ongoing commitment to supporting the financial success and resilience of farmers and ranchers nationwide, offering critical tools to help borrowers manage their finances more effectively.

What the new rules mean for you:

Low-interest installment set-aside program: Financially distressed borrowers can now defer up to one annual loan payment at a reduced interest rate. This simplified option helps ease financial pressure while keeping farming operations running smoothly.
Flexible repayment terms: New repayment options give borrowers the ability to increase their cash flow and build working capital reserves, allowing for long-term financial planning that includes saving for retirement, education, and other future needs.
Reduced collateral requirements: FSA has lowered the amount of additional loan security needed for direct farm loans, making it easier for borrowers to leverage their existing equity without putting their personal residence at risk.

These new rules provide more financial freedom to borrowers. By giving farmers and ranchers better tools to manage their operations, we’re helping them build long-term financial stability. It’s all about making sure they can keep their land, grow their business, and invest in the future.

If you’re an FSA borrower or considering applying for a loan, now is the time to take advantage of these new policies. We encourage you to reach out to your local FSA farm loan staff to ensure you fully understand the wide range of loan making and servicing options available to assist with starting, expanding, or maintaining your agricultural operation.

To conduct business with Gibson County FSA Loan Program, please contact Landon Hogan at 731-330-3072.

USDA Requests Public Input on Implementation of SUSTAINS Act

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is asking for public input on how best to implement the SUSTAINS Act, which authorizes USDA to accept private contributions to channel through several existing USDA conservation programs. The public should submit comments to the Request for Information via the Federal Register by September 16, 2024.

The SUSTAINS Act, signed into law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, provides USDA with the authority to accept contributions of private funds that can be channeled through its existing conservation programs and provides additional guidelines for those contributions. Specifically, the SUSTAINS Act provides an opportunity for the private sector to partner with USDA to engage farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners in supporting conservation initiatives, including to expand implementation of conservation practices to sequester carbon, improve wildlife habitat, protect sources of drinking water and address other natural resource priorities.

NRCS is asking for public input and recommendations to determine how the agency can utilize private funds to target specific natural resource concerns associated with agricultural production. NRCS is interested in supporting program implementation and improving program delivery, including by effectively leveraging additional funds to increase outreach and expand access to financial and technical assistance for underserved producers. NRCS will use the input to determine the next steps to implement this legislation, which could include a proposed rule.

Public comments should be submitted through this Federal Register notice by September 16, 2024.

Anyone with questions can contact NRCS by sending an email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Please specify the Docket ID: NRCS-2024-0014 in the subject line.

To learn more about NRCS programs, producers can contact their local USDA Service Center.  Producers can also apply for NRCS programs, manage conservation plans and contracts, and view and print conservation maps by logging into their farmers.gov account. Producers without an account can sign up today.

Maps for Acreage Reporting

Maps are now available at the Gibson County FSA Office for acreage reporting purposes. Producers may pick them up any time during office hours. If you wish to receive your maps by e-mail, please call our office or email Shawn Wortman at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Please see the following acreage reporting deadlines for Gibson County:

December 16, 2024: fall seeded crops, wheat, barley, canola

In order to maintain program eligibility and benefits, producers must timely file acreage reports. Failure to file an acreage report by the crop acreage reporting deadline may result in ineligibility for future program benefits. FSA will not accept acreage reports provided more than a year after the acreage reporting deadline.

Producers are encouraged to file their acreage reports as soon as planting is completed.

FSA Annual Reminders

CHANGING BANK ACCOUNTS

FSA program payments are issued electronically into your bank account. In order to make timely payments, you need to notify your FSA servicing office if you close your account or if your bank information is changed for whatever reason (such as your financial institution merging or being purchased). Payments can be delayed if FSA is not notified of changes to account and bank routing numbers.

For some programs, payments are not made until the following year. For example, payments for crop year 2023 through the Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage program aren’t issued (dispersed) until 2024. If the bank account was closed due to the death of an individual or dissolution of an entity or partnership before the payment was issued, please notify your local FSA office as soon as possible to claim your payments.

CHANGE IN FARMING OPERATIONS

If you have bought or sold land, or if you have picked up or dropped rented land from your operation, make sure you report the changes to the office as soon as possible. You need to provide a copy of your deed or recorded land contract for purchased property. Failure to maintain accurate records with FSA on all land you have an interest in can lead to possible program ineligibility and penalties. Making the record changes now will save you time this spring. Update signature authorization when changes in the operation occur. Producers are reminded to contact the office if there is a change in operations on a farm so that records can be kept current and accurate. Pursuant to 3 FLP, to avoid any delay in program benefits, all applicants should have consistent representations between Farm Programs and Farm Loan programs. If any difference in representations of the farming operations is identified, additional documentation to resolve inconsistencies may be required.

SIGNATURE POLICY

Using the correct signature when doing business with FSA can save time and prevent a delay in program benefits.

The following are FSA signature guidelines:

A married woman must sign her given name: Mrs. Mary Doe, not Mrs. John Doe
For a minor, FSA requires the minor's signature and one from the minor’s parent

Note, by signing a document with a minor, the parent is liable for actions of the minor and may be liable for refunds, liquidated damages, etc.

When signing on one’s behalf the signature must agree with the name typed or printed on the form or be a variation that does not cause the name and signature to be in disagreement. Example - John W. Smith is on the form. The signature may be John W. Smith or J.W. Smith or J. Smith. Or Mary J. Smith may be signed as Mrs. Mary Joe Smith, M.J. Smith, Mary Smith, etc.

FAXED signatures will be accepted for certain forms and other documents provided the acceptable program forms are approved for FAXED signatures. Producers are responsible for the successful transmission and receipt of FAXED information.

Spouses may sign documents on behalf of each other for FSA and CCC programs in which either has an interest, unless written notification denying a spouse this authority has been provided to the county office.

Spouses cannot sign on behalf of each other as an authorized signatory for partnerships, joint ventures, corporations or other similar entities. Likewise, a spouse cannot sign a document on behalf of the other in order to affirm the eligibility of oneself.

Any member of a general partnership can sign on behalf of the general partnership and bind all members unless the Articles of Partnership are more restrictive. Spouses may sign on behalf of each other’s individual interest in a partnership, unless notification denying a spouse that authority is provided to the county office. Acceptable signatures for general partnerships, joint ventures, corporations, estates, and trusts must consist of an indicator “by” or “for” the individual’s name, individual’s name and capacity, or individual’s name, capacity, and name of entity.

For additional clarification on proper signatures contact your local FSA office.

UPDATE YOUR RECORDS

FSA is cleaning up our producer record database. If you have any unreported changes of address, zip code, phone number, email address or an incorrect name or business name on file they need to be reported to our office. Changes in your farm operation, like the addition of a farm by lease or purchase, need to be reported to our office as well. Producers participating in FSA and NRCS programs are required to timely report changes in their farming operation to the County Committee in writing and update their CCC-902 Farm Operating Plan.

If you have any updates or corrections, please call your local FSA office to update your records.

PAYMENTS TO DECEASED PRODUCERS

In order to claim a Farm Service Agency (FSA) payment on behalf of a deceased producer, all program conditions for the payment must have been met before the applicable producer’s date of death.

If a producer earned a FSA payment prior to becoming deceased, the following is the order of precedence of the representatives of the producer:

administrator or executor of the estate
the surviving spouse
surviving sons and daughters, including adopted children
surviving father and mother
surviving brothers and sisters
heirs of the deceased person who would be entitled to payment according to the State law

In order for FSA to release the payment, the legal representative of the deceased producer must file a form FSA-325, to claim the payment for themselves or an estate. The county office will verify and determine that the application, contract, loan agreement, or other similar form requesting payment issuance, was signed by the applicable deadline for such form, by the deceased or a person legally authorized to act on their behalf at that time of application.

If the application, contract or loan agreement form was signed by someone other than the participant who is deceased, FSA will determine whether the person submitting the form has the legal authority to submit the form to compel FSA to pay the deceased participant.

Payments will be issued to the respective representative’s name using the deceased program participant’s tax identification number. Payments made to representatives are subject to offset regulations for debts owed by the deceased.

FSA is not responsible for advising persons in obtaining legal advice on how to obtain program benefits that may be due to a participant who has died, disappeared or who has been declared incompetent.

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Shawn Wortman, County Executive Director This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Natural Resources Conservation Service

Ryan Blackwood, District Conservationist This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Farm Service Agency

Landon Hogan, Loan Officer This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Jon Quinn, Farm Loan Manager This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Gibson County USDA Service Center

Our Rentals

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CALL 731-855-0023 EXT 3

drill Trailer

Gibson County USDA Service Center Newsletter

From the desks of Shawn Wortman, FSA CED and Ryan Blackwood, NRCS DC

Dates of Importance

November 11, Offices closed in observance of Veteran's Day (USDA)

November 15, Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) signup deadline (NRCS)

November 15, Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) signup deadline (NRCS)

November 15, Agricultural Conservation Easement Program-Wetland Reserve Easement component (ACEP-WRE) signup deadline (NRCS)

November 28, Offices closed in observance of Thanksgiving Day (USDA)

December 2, COC Election ballots must be returned to postmarked to be counted (FSA)

December 10, Master Beef certification, GEMC building, 402 Egg Hill Rd Alamo (UT/TSU Ext Ser)

December 11, Master Farm Manager certification, GEMC building, 402 Egg Hill Rd Alamo (UT/TSU Ext Ser)

December 13, COC election ballots counted at FSA office. (FSA)

December 20, Agricultural Conservation Easement Program-Wetland Reserve Easement component (ACEP-WRE) signup deadline (NRCS)

To subscribe to text message alerts, text TNGibson to FSANOW (372-669). Standard text messaging rates apply.

FSA FINANCING FOR CHALLENGING TIMES

With high input & equipment costs along with low commodity prices, the 2024 growing season has many famers nervous about how things will shape up at the end of the year. Please keep in mind that FSA offers multiple financing options, including refinancing equipment debt. Our program allows borrowers to increase their cash flow in tight years by refinancing other lenders with potentially lower interest rates and longer repayment terms. As always with our loan program, there are minimal loan fees and no pre-payment penalties. Give us a call or stop by to see how we can help you during this challenging year.

For more information on FSA farm loan programs, contact Landon Hogan at the Gibson County USDA Service Center at 731-330-3072 or visit fsa.usda.gov.

Buffers Boast Benefits On & Off Farms

The word “buffer” may evoke a safety net, a filter or an area of shrubs and trees. In the landscape context, that’s pretty much what it is. A buffer, when referred to by a conservationist at the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), is a small strip of land of trees, shrubs and other plants. This strip provides protection from things like wind or pollutants entering waterways and plays a crucial role as a safety net for the environment.

If properly used, buffers remove more than 50 percent of nutrients and pesticides, 60 percent of some pathogens and 75 percent of sediment. In addition to trapping pollutants, buffers slow water runoff and increase the amount of water that enters the ground, recharging our aquifers and protecting communities downstream from flooding.

During the winter buffers help trap snow and cut down on soil erosion in areas with strong winds. They also can protect livestock and wildlife from harsh weather, shield buildings from wind damage and reduce noise and odor coming from a farm. Buffers also give many benefits for local wildlife. They provide food and shelter for many wildlife species like quail, rabbit and other fun-to-watch species while serving as corridor connectors that enable wildlife to move safely from one habitat area to another.

The NRCS helps private landowners create buffers on their land, along waterways and between fields. If used as part of a comprehensive conservation system, buffers make good use of areas that are not ideal for growing crops or other uses.

For more information, contact your Gibson County USDA Service Center at 731-855-0023 or visit nrcs.usda.gov.

Before You Break Out New Ground, Ensure Your Farm Meets Conservation Compliance

The term “sodbusting” is used to identify the conversion of land from native vegetation to commodity crop production after December 23, 1985. As part of the conservation provisions of the Food Security Act of 1985, if you’re proposing to produce agricultural commodities (crops that require annual tillage including one pass planting operations and sugar cane) on land that has been determined highly erodible and that has no crop history prior to December 23, 1985, that land must be farmed in accordance with a conservation plan or system that ensures no substantial increase in soil erosion.

Eligibility for many USDA programs requires compliance with a conservation plan or system on highly erodible land (HEL) used for the production of agricultural commodities. This includes Farm Service Agency (FSA) loan, disaster assistance, safety net, price support, and conservation programs; Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) conservation programs; and Risk Management Agency (RMA) Federal crop insurance.

Before you clear or prepare areas not presently under production for crops that require annual tillage, you are required to file Form AD-1026 “Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation Certification,” with FSA indicating the area to be brought into production. The notification will be referred to NRCS to determine if the field is considered highly erodible land. If the field is considered HEL, you are required to implement a conservation plan or system that limits the erosion to the tolerable soil loss (T) for the predominant HEL soil on those fields.

In addition, prior to removing trees or conducting any other land manipulations that may affect wetlands, remember to update form AD-1026, to ensure you remain in compliance with the wetland conservation provisions.

Prior to purchasing or renting new cropland acres, it is recommended that you check with your local USDA Service Center to ensure your activities will be in compliance with the highly erodible land and wetland conservation provisions.

For additional information on highly erodible land conservation and wetland conservation compliance, contact your local USDA Service Center.

Five Facts About the United States Drought Monitor

This is likely no surprise to you, but drought persists across the western U.S. and is intensifying in some areas. No geographic area is immune to the potential of drought at any given time. The U.S. Drought Monitor provides a weekly drought assessment, and it plays an important role in USDA programs that help farmers and ranchers recover from drought.

Fact #1 - Numerous agencies use the Drought Monitor to inform drought-related decisions.

The map identifies areas of drought and labels them by intensity on a weekly basis. It categorizes the entire country as being in one of six levels of drought. The first two, None and Abnormally Dry (D0), are not considered to be drought. The next four describe increasing levels of drought: Moderate (D1), Severe (D2), Extreme (D3) and Exceptional (D4).

While many entities consult the Drought Monitor for drought information, drought declarations are made by federal, state and local agencies that may or may not use the Drought Monitor to inform their decisions. Some of the ways USDA uses it to determine a producer’s eligibility for certain drought assistance programs, like the Livestock Forage Disaster Program and Emergency Haying or Grazing on Conservation Reserve Program acres and to “fast-track” Secretarial drought disaster designations.

Fact #2 - U.S. Drought Monitor is made with more than precipitation data.

When you think about drought, you probably think about water, or the lack of it. Precipitation plays a major role in the creation of the Drought Monitor, but the map’s author considers numerous indicators, including drought impacts and local insight from over 450 expert observers around the country. Authors use several dozen indicators to assess drought, including precipitation, streamflow, reservoir levels, temperature and evaporative demand, soil moisture and vegetation health. Because the drought monitor depicts both short and long‐term drought conditions, the authors must look at data for multiple timeframes. The final map produced each week represents a summary of the story being told by all the pieces of data. To help tell that story, authors don’t just look at data. They converse over the course of the map-making week with experts across the country and draw information about drought impacts from media reports and private citizens

Fact #3 - A real person, using real data, updates the map.

Each week’s map author, not a computer, processes and analyzes data to update the drought monitor. The map authors are trained climatologists or meteorologists from the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (the academic partner and website host of the Drought Monitor), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and USDA. The author’s job is to do what a computer can’t – use their expertise to reconcile the sometimes-conflicting stories told by each stream of data into a single assessment.

Fact #4 - The Drought Monitor provides a current snapshot, not a forecast.

The Drought Monitor is a “snapshot” of conditions observed during the most recent week and builds off the previous week’s map. The map is released on Thursdays and depicts conditions based on data for the week that ended the preceding Tuesday. Rain that falls on the Wednesday just before the USDM’s release won’t be reflected until the next map is published. This provides a consistent, week‐to‐week product and gives the author a window to assess the data and come up with a final map.

Fact #5 – Your input can be part of the drought-monitoring process.

State climatologists and other trained observers in the drought monitoring network relay on-the-ground information from numerous sources to the US Drought monitor author each week. That can include information that you contribute.

The Drought Monitor serves as a trigger for multiple forms of federal disaster relief for agricultural producers, and sometimes producers contact the author to suggest that drought conditions in their area are worse than what the latest drought monitor shows. When the author gets a call like that, it prompts them to look closely at all available data for that area, to see whether measurements of precipitation, temperature, soil moisture and other indicators corroborate producer-submitted reports. This is the process that authors follow whether they receive one report or one hundred reports, although reports from more points may help state officials and others know where to look for impacts.

There are multiple ways to contribute your observations:

Talk to your state climatologist - Find the current list at the American Association of State Climatologists website.
Email - Emails sent toThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. inform the USDM authors.
Become a CoCoRaHS observer - Submit drought reports along with daily precipitation observations to the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network.
Submit Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) - go.unl.edu/CMOR.

For more information, read our Ask the Expert blog with a NDMC climatologist or visit farmers.gov/protection-recovery.

2025 Acreage Reporting Dates and Map Availability

In order to comply with FSA and RMA program eligibility requirements, all producers are encouraged to visit the Gibson County FSA office to file an accurate crop certification report by the applicable deadline.

The following acreage reporting dates are applicable for Gibson County:

December 15, 2024, Fall seeded crops: wheat, canola, oats, etc

July 15, 2025, Spring seeded crops: corn, soybeans, cotton, CRP acreage and pastures and hay land.

The following exceptions apply to the above acreage reporting dates:

If the crop has not been planted by the above acreage reporting date, then the acreage must be reported no later than 15 calendar days after planting is completed.
If a producer acquires additional acreage after the above acreage reporting date, then the acreage must be reported no later than 30 calendar days after purchase or acquiring the lease. Appropriate documentation must be provided to the county office.
If a perennial forage crop is reported with the intended use of “cover only,” “green manure,” “left standing,” or “seed,” then the acreage must be reported by July 15th.

Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) policy holders should note that the acreage reporting date for NAP covered crops is the earlier of the dates listed above or 15 calendar days before grazing or harvesting of the crop begins.

For questions regarding crop certification, requests to pick up or have maps emailed and crop loss reports, please contact the Gibson County FSA office at 731-855-0023 to set up an appointment.

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Shawn Wortman, County Executive Director This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Natural Resources Conservation Service

Ryan Blackwood, District Conservationist This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Farm Service Agency

Landon Hogan, Loan Officer This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Jon Quinn, Farm Loan Manager This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Gibson County USDA Service Center

Rental Equipment

The Haybuster Drill

The haybuster drill has an 10’ span with 3 different bins for different types of seed.

The drill needs a minimum 70hp tractor w/ hydraulics to operate it properly.

The drill’s primary use is for planting Native Warm Season Grasses, wildlife food plots, small grains, and pasture/hay seedings.

The rental rate is $10/acre or a $100 minimum.

20 ac. X $10.00 = $200.00

5 ac. X $10.00 = $50.00 which means the amount due is $100.

The Stringer Trailer

The Stringer Trailer is $100 for 2 days. A late fee of $100.00 per day starting on the 3rd day will be excessed unless the extension is approved by Gibson County SWCD.

Gibson County USDA Service Center Newsletter

GIBSON COUNTY USDA SERVICE CENTER NEWS- March 2024

Farm Service Agency | Natural Resources Conservation Service | Risk Management Agency

From the desks of Shawn Wortman, FSA CED and Ryan Blackwood, NRCS DC

Dates of Importance

March 6 & 7, Improving Profitability and Resiliency Through Building Soil Health Workshop (FSA Auditorium) preregister with Tyson Grain.

March 8, Deadline to apply for CSP. (NRCS)

March 15, Deadline to timely enter into ARC/PLC annual crop program. (FSA)

March 29, Deadline to submit an offer for General CRP sign up. (FSA)

To subscribe to text message alerts, text TNGibson to FSANOW (372-669). Standard text messaging rates apply.

BEFORE YOU BREAK OUT NEW GROUND, ENSURE YOUR FARM MEETS CONSERVATION COMPLIANCE

For additional information on highly erodible land conservation and wetland conservation compliance, contact the Gibson County FSA at 731-855-0023.

USDA ANNOUNCES CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM GENERAL SIGNUP FOR 2024

Sign up for the general Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) starts March 4 and runs through March 29, 2024

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that agricultural producers and private landowners can begin signing up for the general Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) starting March 4 and running through March 29, 2024.

General CRP

General CRP helps producers and landowners establish long-term, resource-conserving plant species, such as approved grasses or trees, to control soil erosion, improve water quality and enhance wildlife habitat on cropland. Additionally, General CRP includes a Climate-Smart Practice Incentive to help increase carbon sequestration and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by helping producers and landowners establish trees and permanent grasses, enhance wildlife habitat, and restore wetlands.

General CRP is one of several ways agricultural producers and private landowners can participate in the program.

Other CRP Options This past January FSA began accepting applications for the Continuous CRP signup. Under this enrollment, producers and landowners can enroll in CRP throughout the year. Offers are automatically accepted provided the producer and land meet the eligibility requirements and the enrollment levels do not exceed the statutory cap.

FSA will announce the dates for Grassland CRP signup in the near future.

Producers with expiring CRP acres can use the Transition Incentives Program (TIP), which incentivizes producers who sell or enter a long-term lease with a beginning, veteran, or socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher who plans to sustainably farm or ranch the land.

How to Sign Up Landowners and producers interested in CRP should contact their local USDA Service Center to learn more or to apply for the program before their deadlines.

USDA Now Accepting Applications for Farm Loans Online

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has launched an online application for Direct Loan customers. More than 26,000 customers who submit a Direct Loan application each year can now use an online, interactive, guided application that is paperless and provides helpful features including an electronic signature option, the ability to attach supporting documents such as tax returns, complete a balance sheet and build a farm operating plan. This tool is part of a broader effort by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) to streamline its processes, improve customers service, and expand credit access.

The online farm loan application replicates the support an applicant would receive when completing a loan application in person with an FSA Farm Loan Officer, while continuing to provide customers with one-on-one assistance as needed. This tool and other process improvements allow farmers and ranchers to submit complete loan applications and reduce the number of incomplete and withdrawn applications.

Through a personalized dashboard, borrowers can track the progress of their loan application. It can be accessed on farmers.gov or by completing FSA’s Loan Assistance Tool at farmers.gov/loan-assistance-tool. To use the online loan application tool, producers must establish a USDA customer account and a USDA Level 2 eAuthentication (“eAuth”) account or a Login.gov account. For the initial stage, the online application tool is only available for producers who will be, or are currently, operating their farm as an individual. FSA is expanding the tools availability to married couples applying jointly and other legal entities in 2024.

Farm Loan Improvement Efforts

FSA has a significant initiative underway to streamline and automate Farm Loan Program customer-facing business processes. For the over 26,000 producers who submit a Direct Loan application to FSA annually, and its 85,000 Direct Loan borrowers, FSA has made improvements this year, including:

A simplified direct loan paper application, reduced from 29 pages to 13 pages.
The Loan Assistance Tool on farmers.gov that provides customers with an interactive online, step-by-step guide to identifying the Direct Loan products that may be a fit for their business needs and to understanding the application process.

More Information

FSA continues to accept and review individual requests for assistance from borrowers who took certain extraordinary measures to avoid delinquency on their direct FSA loans or those who missed a recent installment or are unable to make their next scheduled installment. All requests for assistance must be received by Dec. 31, 2023. For more information, or to submit a request for assistance, producers can contact Landon Hogan at 731-330-3072 or visit farmers.gov/inflation-reduction-investments/assistance.

The Inflation Reduction Act, a historic, once-in-a-generation investment and opportunity for agricultural communities, provided $3.1 billion for USDA to provide relief for distressed borrowers with certain FSA direct and guaranteed loans and to expedite assistance for those whose agricultural operations are at financial risk. Since October 2022, USDA has provided approximately $1.6 billion in immediate assistance to more than 27,000 financially distressed direct and guaranteed FSA loan borrowers.

FARMERS HELP AMERICA KEEP SOIL HEALTHY

Our lives are dependent on healthy soil. Healthy soil gives us clean air and water, bountiful crops and forests, productive grazing lands, diverse wildlife and beautiful landscapes. It’s the reason why USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service experts are in your community and across the nation.

Soil is composed of air, water, organic matter and minerals. A community of organisms – functioning as a soil food web – lives all or parts of their lives in soil. More individual organisms are in a teaspoon of soil than there are people on earth. Increasing soil organic matter typically improves soil health, since organic matter improves several critical functions of soil.

To improve the health of their soil, more and more farmers and ranchers are keeping soil covered, reducing disturbance activities such as tilling, keeping plants growing throughout the year, and diversifying the crops they’re planting in a rotation. Taking these steps allow farmers and ranchers to help reduce erosion while increasing the soil’s ability to provide nutrients and water to the plant at critical times during the growing season.

When producers focus on improving soil health, they often have larger harvests, lower input costs, optimized nutrient use, and improved crop resilience during drought years like last year. In heavy rainfall years, healthy soil holds more water, reducing runoff that helps avert flooding downstream.

And because healthy soil allows for greater water infiltration and less erosion, nutrients and pesticides stay on the farm where they benefit crops, and are far less likely to be carried off the farm into streams and lakes where they can cause harm.

NRCS helps farmers install conservation practices such as cover crops to maintain and improve soil health – all of which can lead to productive, profitable and sustainable farming and ranching operations for generations to come.

Contact the Gibson County NRCS at 731-855-0023 to find out more.

Deadline for Farmers To Enroll for the Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage Programs the 2024 Crop Year

2024 Elections and Enrollment   

Producers can elect coverage and enroll in ARC-County (ARC-CO) or PLC, which provide crop-by-crop protection, or ARC-Individual (ARC-IC), which protects the entire farm. Although election changes for 2024 are optional, producers must enroll through a signed contract each year. Also, if a producer has a multi-year contract on the farm it will continue for 2024 unless an election change is made.    

If producers do not submit their election revision by the March 15, 2024, deadline, their election remains the same as their 2023 election for commodities on the farm. Farm owners cannot enroll in either program unless they have a share interest in the cropland.            

Crop Insurance Considerations      

Producers are reminded that ARC and PLC elections and enrollments can impact eligibility for some crop insurance products.   

Producers on farms with a PLC election can purchase Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO) through their Approved Insurance Provider; however, producers on farms where ARC is the election are ineligible for SCO on their planted acres for that crop on that farm.   

Unlike SCO, the Enhanced Coverage Option (ECO) is unaffected by an ARC election.  Producers may add ECO regardless of the farm program election.  

Upland cotton farmers who choose to enroll seed cotton base acres in ARC or PLC are ineligible for the Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX) on their planted cotton acres for that farm.    

Web-Based Decision Tools   

Many universities offer web-based decision tools to help producers make informed, educated decisions using crop data specific to their respective farming operations. Producers are encouraged to use the tool of their choice to support their ARC and PLC elections.

For more information, contact your Gibson County Farm Service Agency at 731-855-0023 or fsa.usda.gov or contact your crop insurance agent.

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Shawn Wortman, County Executive Director This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Natural Resources Conservation Service

Ryan Blackwood, District Conservationist This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Farm Service Agency

Landon Hogan, Loan Officer This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Jeffrey McEwen, Farm Loan Manager This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Gibson County USDA Service Center

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From the desks of Shawn Wortman, FSA CED and Ryan Blackwood, NRCS DC

Gibson County USDA Service Center

From the desks of Shawn Wortman, FSA CED and Ryan Blackwood, NRCS DC

Gibson County USDA Service Center

From the desks of Shawn Wortman, FSA CED and Ryan Blackwood, NRCS DC

Gibson County USDA Service Center

Gibson County USDA Service Center

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