What's Up at the FSA Office?

by Jeremy Leitz, Allamakee County Executive Director (563) 568-2148

Upcoming Deadlines/Dates
February 17: Office closed in observance of Washington’s Birthday
February 28: CRP General Signup
March 15: 2019 ARCPLC Election
June 30: 2020 ARCPLC Election
September 30: PLC Yield Update

USDA Issues Third Tranche of 2019 MFP Payments
USDA issued the third and final tranche of 2019 Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payments aimed at assisting farmers suffering from damage due to trade retaliation by foreign nations. The payments will begin to show up in farmers’ bank accounts by the end of this week.

This is the final of three tranches of MFP payments. The first tranche was comprised of the higher of either 50 percent of a producer’s calculated payment or $15 per acre, which may reduce potential payments to be made in tranche three. The second tranche was 25% of the total payment expected, in addition to the 50% from the first tranche.

Commodity Credit Corporation Lending Rates for February 2020
USDA announced interest rates for February 2020, which are effective February 1 - February 29, 2020. The Commodity Credit Corporation borrowing rate-based charge for February is 1.500%.

The interest rate for crop year commodity loans less than one year disbursed during February is 2.500%. Interest rates for Farm Storage Facility Loans approved for February are as follows: 1.625% with three-year loan terms; 1.625% with five-year loan terms; 1.750% with seven-year loan terms; 1.875% with 10-year loan terms; and 1.875% with 12-year loan terms; and 2.000% with fifteen-year loan terms.
 

Sign Up for the 2019 and 2020 ARCPLC Program
Producers now can enroll in the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs for the 2019 and 2020 crop year. ARC provides income support payments on historical base acres when actual crop revenue declines below a specified guaranteed level. PLC provides income support payments on historical base acres when the effective price for a covered commodity falls below its reference price. The 2018 Farm Bill reauthorized and updated both programs.

Signup for the 2019 crop year closes March 15, 2020, while signup for the 2020 crop year closes June 30, 2020. Producers who have not yet enrolled for 2019 can enroll for both 2019 and 2020 during the same visit to an FSA county office. 

Update Your PLC Yields
Farm owners have a one-time opportunity to update PLC payment yields beginning with crop year 2020. If the farm owner and producer visit the FSA county office together, FSA can also update yield information during that visit. 

The update is effective for 2020 forward, and for corn and beans is equal to 81% of your 2013-2017 average.  We have your current yields in our office along with what you would need to average to increase your yields. So while you’re in signing up for the ARCPLC program, we can provide you with this information. You can then visit with your crop insurance agent to see if it’s possible to update your yields. The deadline to update is September 30.

Open House
The Allamakee USDA Service Center will host an open house (see ad below) at its new office location located across from Fareway at 770 11th Avenue SW.  Stop by and see the new office February 13 from 1-3 p.m. Cookies and refreshments will be provided.