220 research outputs found
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Farm Safety Net Programs: Background and Issues
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) operates several programs that supplement the income of farmers and ranchers in times of low farm prices and natural disasters. Federal crop insurance, farm programs, and disaster assistance are collectively called the farm safety net.
Federal crop insurance is often referred to as the centerpiece of the farm safety net because of its cost and broad scope for addressing natural disasters. The program is permanently authorized and makes available subsidized insurance for more than 130 commodities (ranging from apples to wheat) to help farmers manage risks associated with a loss in yield or revenue. Program cost is projected by the Congressional Budget Office to total 4 billion per year over the next decade. Programs are free for producers.
Agricultural disaster assistance is permanently authorized for livestock and orchards. Under the 2014 farm bill, nearly all parts of the U.S. farm sector are now covered by either a disaster program or federal crop insurance, which is expected to reduce calls for ad hoc assistance. As of May 2015, producer payments had totaled more than $5 billion for losses in FY2012-FY2015.
Compared with the previous farm bill, the 2014 farm bill was enacted with more crop insurance options and higher reference prices designed to trigger payments more often than under previous law. Funding was accomplished by eliminating direct payments that had been made annually since 1996 but played no role in managing farm risk because they did not vary with farm prices.
Several facets of the current farm safety net might be of interest to the 114th Congress. An initial focus could be on USDA’s implementation of the farm safety net provisions. Issues could include the delayed payment schedule, which could expose cashflow problems, and the pending “actively engaged” rule that could affect program eligibility for some producers.
With ongoing concern for budget deficits and federal spending, Congress also might be interested in reviewing the effectiveness of the revised safety net and actual costs, which are expected to be higher than earlier projections due to lower farm prices. Farm safety net proponents say the current suite of programs has been designed for such situations and is needed to adequately protect producers and the overall agriculture sector. Critics believe that a simplified approach might be more effective and less expensive, with funds used instead for broad societal gains, such as investment in agricultural research or transportation infrastructure. The Administration has proposed trimming crop insurance subsidies, arguing that the safety net could remain effective
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Agricultural Disaster Assistance
[Excerpt] The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has at its disposal several programs designed to help farmers and ranchers recover from the financial effects of natural disasters. These are (1) federal crop insurance, (2) the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), (3) livestock and fruit tree disaster programs, and (4) emergency disaster loans for both crop and livestock producers. All have permanent authorization, and the emergency loan program is the only one requiring a federal disaster designation. Most programs receive funding amounts of “such sums as necessary” and are not subject to annual discretionary appropriations
Agricultural Disaster Assistance
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers several permanently authorized programs to help farmers recover financially from a natural disaster, including federal crop insurance, the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), and emergency disaster loans. The federal crop insurance program is designed to protect crop producers from unavoidable risks associated with adverse weather, and weather-related plant diseases and insect infestations. Producers who grow a crop that is currently ineligible for crop insurance may be eligible for a direct payment under NAP. Under the emergency disaster (EM) loan program, when a county has been declared a disaster area by either the President or the Secretary of Agriculture, agricultural producers in that county may become eligible for low-interest loans.
In order to provide a regular supplement to crop insurance and NAP payments, the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-246, the 2008 farm bill) included authorization and funding for five new disaster programs to cover losses through FY2011. The largest of the new programs is the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program (SURE), which is designed to compensate eligible producers for a portion of crop losses that are not eligible for an indemnity payment under the crop insurance program.
The 2008 farm bill also authorized three new livestock assistance programs and a tree assistance program. The Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) compensates ranchers at a rate of 75% of market value for livestock mortality caused by a disaster. The Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) assists ranchers who graze livestock on drought-affected pastureland or grazing land. The Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honey Bees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) compensates producers for disaster losses not covered under other disaster programs. Finally, the Tree Assistance Program (TAP) provides payments to eligible orchardists and nursery tree growers to cover 70% of the cost of replanting trees or nursery stock following a natural disaster. For individual producers, combined payments under SURE, LIP, LFP, and ELAP may not exceed 100,000 per year per producer applies.
The new programs are designed to address the ad hoc nature of disaster assistance provided to producers during the last two decades. Since 1988, Congress has regularly made emergency financial assistance available to farmers and ranchers, primarily in the form of crop disaster payments and livestock assistance.
Following widespread crop losses in 2009 due to excessive rain, legislation was introduced in late 2009 in both chambers (S. 2810 and H.R. 4177) to make emergency payments to producers for losses in calendar year 2009. The Senate Finance Committee subsequently attached emergency agricultural assistance to the House-passed version of the Tax Extenders Act of 2009 (H.R. 4213). The Senate amended and passed the bill on March 10, 2010. The House is now considering the Senate-passed version. The legislation would provide a supplemental “direct payment” to producers in designated disaster counties who receive direct payments for crops under the 2008 farm bill (e.g., wheat, corn, upland cotton, rice, peanuts, and soybeans). The threshold for loss due to a natural disaster is 5%, much lower than historical norms, and the payment would be 90% of a farm’s direct payment in 2009. (The loss threshold compares with previous disaster programs that typically paid for losses in excess of 35% at 65% of established prices.) Provisions are also included for payments to specialty crop producers (42 million), and aquaculture producers (1.48 billion
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Agricultural Disaster Assistance
Report containing a description of recent developments in weather and U. S. policy. as well as an overview of current and expired USDA disaster assistance programs. An appendix reviews the recent history of emergency supplemental farm disaster assistance and administrative actions by USDA
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Federal Crop Insurance: Background
This report provides a primer on the federal crop insurance program
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Agricultural Disaster Assistance
This report has four sections. The first describes recent developments in weather and policy. The second provides an overview of the current USDA disaster assistance programs: federal crop insurance, NAP payments, and emergency disaster loans. The third section discusses the now expired disaster programs under the 2008 farm bill, specifically Supplemental Revenue, Assistance Payments Program (SURE), and four other smaller disaster programs. The fourth section briefly reviews the potential reauthorization of disaster programs proposed in both House and Senate versions of the 2013 farm bill. An appendix reviews the recent history of emergency supplemental farm disaster assistance and USDA administrative actions
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The Farm Price-Cost Squeeze and U.S. Farm Policy
This report discusses the current farm price-cost squeeze, how it varies across commodities, and the factors behind the current situation. The report also considers the cyclical nature of agricultural markets, effects on producers, and the government's role in addressing the situation
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Farm Safety Net Proposals for the 2012 Farm Bill
This report discusses three proposals-one by the National Cotton Council, one by Representative Neugebauer, and another by a private crop insurance company-focus on modifications to crop insurance programs. The National Farmers Union proposes to replace existing farm programs with a combination of farmer-owned-reserves, increased loan rates, and set asides. A proposed new dairy program-the Dairy Security Act-would provide a voluntary margin insurance program and market stabilization activities in place of current dairy programs. Finally, the proposed REFRESH Act (Senator Lugar) would eliminate most commodity programs (including the sugar program), and incorporate ARRM, the Dairy Security Act, and expanded whole-farm revenue insurance in their place
Chemical Abundances in Virgo Spiral Galaxies II: Effects of Cluster Environment
We present new measurements of chemical abundances in H II regions in spiral
galaxies of the Virgo cluster and a comparison of Virgo galaxies and field
spirals. With these new data there now exist nine Virgo spirals with abundance
measurements for at least four H II regions. Our sample of Virgo galaxies
ranges from H I deficient objects near the core of the cluster to galaxies with
normal H I properties, far from the cluster core. We investigate the
relationship between H I disk characteristics and chemical abundances to
determine whether dynamical process that remove gas from the disk, such as ram
pressure stripping by the intracluster medium, also affect the chemical
abundances.Comment: 53 pages (gzip'ed and uuencoded postscript) Accepted for publication
for the Astrophysical Journa
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