North Dakota FSA Update
January 31, 2022: Deadline to file an application for payment for 2021 Livestock Forage Losses under LFP
January 31, 2022: Deadline to file an application for payment for 2021 ELAP Assistance
January 31, 2022:Deadline to apply for loans and LDP’s on wool shorn in calendar year 2021.
January 31, 2022- March 11, 2022: General CRP signup
February 3, 2022: NDSU and ND FSA- ARC/PLC and NAP Webinar (11:00 AM CST)
February 4, 2022: Deadline to sign up for Organic and Transitional Education and Certification Program (OTECP)
February 18, 2022: Dairy Margin Coverage and Supplemental Dairy Margin Coverage enrollment deadline
February 21, 2022:USDA Service Centers closed in observance of
Washington's Birthday
February 25, 2022: Spot Market Hog Pandemic Program (SMHPP) Deadline to apply
February 28, 2022: Deadline to apply for the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) for 2021 losses
March 15, 2022: 2022 NAP Coverage Deadline - Spring Planted Crops
March 15, 2022: 2022 NAP Coverage Deadline - Perennial and Other Forage
March 15, 2022: 2022 ARCPLC Enrollment/Election Deadline
April 4, 2022 to May 13, 2022: Grassland CRP signup
Some USDA Service Centers in North Dakota are open to limited visitors by appointment only and some ND USDA Service Centers cannot accept in person visitors for the temporary time being. We encourage you to check the status of your local USDA Service Center and make an appointment to discuss your business needs prior to making a trip to the Office.
Regardless, Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) staff continue to work with agricultural producers via phone, email, and other digital tools. Producers can learn more about how to leverage these digital offerings by visiting https://www.farmers.gov/mydocs.
In addition to delivering our typical programs and services to producers, USDA is also offering relief to producers through programs and flexibilities through the Pandemic Assistance for Producers initiative, a broad set of programs to help farmers, ranchers, and producers who felt the impact of COVID-19 market disruptions.
USDA has developed a detailed, data-driven COVID workplace safety plan that prioritizes the health and safety of our staff and visitors. Additionally, for information on USDA-wide response to the COVID-19 pandemic, visit USDA's coronavirus response page.
To locate and call your Service Center to schedule an appointment, please visit: farmers.gov/service-locator.
To Expedite Future Assistance, Gather and Submit Loss Records Now for Livestock Forage Disaster Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reminds ranchers and livestock producers that they may be eligible for financial assistance through the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) for 2021 grazing losses due to a qualifying drought or fire. The deadline to apply for 2021 LFP assistance is Jan. 31, 2022.
For the 2021 program year, ## counties in State have met drought severity levels that trigger LFP eligibility. More than $473.1 million has been paid, to date, to eligible livestock producers in 26 states and territories for 2021 LFP. For LFP, qualifying drought triggers are determined using the U.S. Drought Monitor. Visit the FSA LFP webpage for a list of eligible counties and grazing crops.
LFP provides payments to eligible livestock producers and contract growers who also produce forage crops for grazing and suffered losses due to a qualifying drought or fire during the normal grazing period for the county. Eligible livestock include alpacas, beef cattle, buffalo/bison, beefalo, dairy cattle, deer, elk, emus, equine, goats, llamas, reindeer or sheep that have been or would have been grazing the eligible grazing land or pastureland during the normal grazing period.
To expedite the application process, producers are encouraged to gather and submit records documenting 2021 losses. Supporting documents may include information related to grazing leases, contract grower agreements, and more.
More Information
LFP is part of a broader suite of disaster assistance available through USDA.
The Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP), which also has a Jan. 31, 2022, deadline, provides eligible producers with compensation for certain feed losses not covered by LFP as well as assistance with transporting water to livestock and feed transportation expenses.
Additional disaster assistance information can be found on farmers.gov, including the Farmers.gov Drought Webpage, Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool, Disaster-at-a-Glance fact sheet, and Farm Loan Discovery Tool.
For FSA and Natural Resources Conservation Service programs, including LFP and ELAP, producers should contact their local USDA Service Center. Service Center staff continue to work with agricultural producers via phone, email, and other digital tools. Due to the pandemic, some USDA Service Centers are open to limited visitors. For assistance with a crop insurance claim, producers and landowners should contact their crop insurance agent.
General Signup to open Jan. 31
Agricultural producers and landowners can sign up soon for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), a cornerstone conservation program offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and a key tool in the Biden-Harris Administration effort to address climate change and achieve other natural resource benefits. The General CRP signup will run from Jan. 31 to March 11, and the Grassland CRP signup will run from April 4 to May 13.
Producers and landowners enrolled 4.6 million acres into CRP signups in 2021, including 2.5 million acres in the largest Grassland CRP signup in history. There are currently 22.1 million acres enrolled, and FSA is aiming to reach the 25.5-million-acre cap statutorily set for fiscal year 2022.
CRP Signups
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.
Meanwhile, Grassland CRP is a working lands program, helping landowners and operators protect grassland, including rangeland and pastureland and certain other lands, while maintaining the areas as working grazing lands. Protecting grasslands contributes positively to the economy of many regions, provides biodiversity of plant and animal populations and provides important carbon sequestration benefits to deliver lasting climate outcomes.
Alongside these programs, producers and landowners can enroll acres in Continuous CRP under the ongoing sign up, which includes projects available through the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) and State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE).
Climate Benefits
Last year, FSA enacted a Climate-Smart Practice Incentive for CRP General and Continuous signups, to better target CRP on addressing climate change. This incentive aims to increase carbon sequestration and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. CRP’s climate-smart practices include establishment of trees and permanent grasses, development of wildlife habitat and wetland restoration. The Climate-Smart Practice Incentive is annual, and the amount is based on the benefits of each practice type.
Additionally, in order to better target the program toward climate outcomes, USDA invested $10 million last year in the CRP Monitoring, Assessment and Evaluation (MAE) program to measure and monitor the soil carbon and climate resilience impacts of conservation practices over the life of new CRP contracts. This will enable the agency to further refine the program and practices to provide producers tools for increased climate resilience.
More Information on CRP
Landowners and producers interested in CRP should contact their local USDA Service Center to learn more or to apply for the program -- for General CRP before the March 11 deadline, and for Grassland CRP before the May 13 deadline. Service Center staff continue to work with agricultural producers via phone, email, and other digital tools. Due to the pandemic, some USDA Service Centers are open to limited visitors. Additionally, fact sheets and other resources are available at fsa.usda.gov/crp.
Signed into law in 1985, CRP is one of the largest voluntary private-lands conservation programs in the United States. It was originally intended to primarily control soil erosion and potentially stabilize commodity prices by taking marginal lands out of production. The program has evolved over the years, providing many conservation and economic benefits.
The webinar on ARC/PLC decisions and enrollment will be held Feb. 3
Farmers will have the opportunity to learn more about the upcoming Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) election and the decisions the programs entail during a webinar that North Dakota State University (NDSU) Extension and the North Dakota Farm Service Agency (FSA) are hosting on Thursday, Feb. 3, at 11 a.m. CST.
The webinar will also include information on FSA’s Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP).
The ARC and PLC sign-up period runs through March 15 which means farmers can now make elections and enroll in these programs for the 2022 crop year. These key USDA safety-net programs help farmers mitigate fluctuations in either revenue or prices for certain crops.
“Agriculture risk coverage or price loss coverage programs provide income support,” says Laura Heinrich, North Dakota FSA farm program director. “Whether you’re making changes to your elections or keeping them the same, you must still sign a 2022 contract.”
The webinar will discuss farm program decisions for 2022 under the ARC/PLC commodity crop safety net, as well as the NAP, which can be valuable to farmers of non-insurable crops, protecting against losses due to natural disasters. Farmers must apply for NAP coverage ahead of an upcoming application deadline.
“NDSU has developed online ARC and PLC election decision tools that we will demonstrate on the webinar,” says Ron Haugen, NDSU Extension farm management specialist. “This will be a nice opportunity for farmers, agriculture professionals and agriculture stakeholders to learn more about current USDA safety-net program details and decision opportunities to assist their operations.”
For more information and to join the meeting, visit www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/ag-hub/events/arc/plc-and-nap-webinar/.
Participants may ask questions during the live webinar. The webinar will be recorded, and the recording will be available at www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/ag-hub/events/arc/plc-and-nap-webinar/ for later viewing.
For more information on ARC and PLC, visit www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-and-services/arcplc_program/, or find your local USDA Service Center at www.farmers.gov/working-with-us/service-center-locator/.
Feb. 4 is the deadline for agricultural producers who are certified organic, or transitioning to organic, to apply for the Organic and Transitional Education and Certification Program (OTECP). Signup for OTECP, administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA), began Nov. 8.
Certified operations and transitional operations may apply for OTECP for eligible expenses paid during the 2020 and 2021 fiscal years during this signup period. Signup for the 2022 fiscal year will be announced at a later date.
For each year, OTECP covers 25% of a certified operation’s eligible certification expenses, up to $250 per certification category (crop, livestock, wild crop, handling and State Organic Program fee). This includes application fees, inspection fees, USDA organic certification costs, state organic program fees and more.
Crop and livestock operations transitioning to organic production may be eligible for 75% of a transitional operation’s eligible expenses, up to $750, for each year. This includes fees charged by a certifying agent or consultant for pre-certification inspections and development of an organic system plan.
For both certified operations and transitional operations, OTECP covers 75% of the registration fees, up to $200, per year, for educational events that include content related to organic production and handling in order to assist operations in increasing their knowledge of production and marketing practices that can improve their operations, increase resilience and expand available marketing opportunities. Additionally, both certified and transitional operations may be eligible for 75% of the expense of soil testing required under the National Organic Program (NOP) to document micronutrient deficiency, not to exceed $100 per year.
Producers apply through their local FSA office and can also obtain one-on-one support with applications by calling 877-508-8364. The program application and additional information can be found at farmers.gov/otecp.
Additional Organic Support
OTECP builds upon USDA’s Organic Certification Cost Share Program (OCCSP) which provides cost share assistance of 50%, up to a maximum of $500 per scope, to producers and handlers of agricultural products who are obtaining or renewing their certification under the NOP. Although the application period for OCCSP ended Nov. 1, 2021, FSA will consider late-filed applications for those operations who still wish to apply.
Meanwhile, USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) recently made improvements to Whole-Farm Revenue Protection to make it more flexible and accessible to organic producers.
To learn more about USDA’s broader assistance for organic producers, visit usda.gov/organic.
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