Nebraska FSA and NRCS State Office
Electronic Newsletter - November 21, 2024
In This Issue:
I want to start this month’s message by wishing you, our FSA farmer and rancher customers, a Happy Thanksgiving. We are thankful for all you do to provide the food that we will enjoy during this upcoming season of celebrations.
I also want to offer my thanks to all of our Nebraska FSA employees. They work every day to deliver programs and services to current and potential new customers in order to support and grow the agriculture industry in our state. Our offices will be closed for Thanksgiving so these folks can enjoy a well-deserved day off. I hope you can agree these employees deserve our “thanks” and that you will share such sentiment with them next time you are in the office.
As harvest begins to wind down, many of you already will have started finalizing arrangements for the acres you will farm or ranch next year. We ask that you remember any changes from the previous year are an important part of your FSA farm records and your eligibility for some programs. Stop in and see your county FSA office as soon as possible to report these changes.
If you are storing your grain and considering taking out a Marketing Assistance Loan (MAL), we need to see you sooner rather than later. There is a process involved with receiving a MAL, and it’s important to start that application before the middle of December if you want to receive the loan proceeds in the 2024 calendar year.
In addition, if you are going to need financing through FSA, either through our direct or guaranteed loan programs, we are ready now to assist you. It’s good to begin this planning process early. Also, please know that if you are a producer who is facing some financial stress, there are resources available to assist you. Please see the article below for more information on available resources.
As I close this column, I also want to offer a note of appreciation to all those producers who serve on our FSA County Committees across the state. Every FSA county office has an elected County Committee whose members make important program and management decisions. These folks are producers themselves, who are elected to their positions by the farmers and ranchers they serve. We appreciate all you do.
That’s all for this month. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.
- Tim Divis
Elections for USDA’s Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) County Committees 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. Customers can identify which Local Administrative Ares (LAA) they or their farming operation is in by using our new GIS locator tool available at fsa.usda.gov/elections.
To be eligible to vote in the elections, a person must:
- Be of legal voting age or, if not of legal voting age, supervise and conduct the farming operation of an entire farm.
- Have an interest in a farm or ranch as either:
- An individual who meets one or more of the following:
- Is eligible and capable to vote in one’s own right.
- Is a partner of a general partnership.
- Is a member of a joint venture.
- Is an authorized representative of a legal entity.
- Participate or cooperate in any FSA program that is provided by law. A cooperating producer is someone who has provided information about their farming or ranching operation(s) but may not have applied or received FSA program benefits.
County committee election ballots were mailed to eligible voters on Nov. 4, 2024. The last day to return completed ballots to the USDA Service Center is Dec. 2, 2024.
For more information on eligibility to serve on FSA county committees, visit: fsa.usda.gov/elections.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is issuing almost $92 million in payments to livestock producers, nationwide, who faced increased supplemental feed costs as a result of forage losses due to 2022 qualifying drought and wildfire. The payments for livestock producers are through the Emergency Livestock Relief Program (ELRP) 2022 and are a second round of payments to producers using remaining funds in the program.
ELRP support came from the Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2023 (P.L. 117-328), signed by President Biden that provides financial assistance for agricultural producers impacted by wildfires, droughts, hurricanes, winter storms and other eligible disasters occurring in calendar year 2022.
The almost $92 million in ELRP payments for 2022 losses build on more than $465 million in payments made to eligible livestock producers in September 2023 who suffered qualifying losses due to drought or wildfire in 2022. Learn more on the Emergency Relief webpage.
Producers are reminded to keep updated livestock inventory records. These records are necessary in the event of a natural disaster and are an important part of disaster assistance program applications, including applications for the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) and the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-raised Fish Program (ELAP).
When disasters strike, the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) can assist producers who suffered excessive livestock death losses and grazing or feed losses due to eligible natural disasters.
To participate in livestock disaster assistance programs, producers will be required to provide verifiable documentation of death losses resulting from an eligible adverse weather event and must submit a notice of loss to their local FSA office.
To be eligible for livestock deaths, producers must submit evidence to support their losses. Some examples of records that could be used to help support a claim include: veterinary records, contemporaneous producer records, veterinary certification existing at the time of the event, balance sheets, brand inspection records, loan records, docking records, bank statements, shearing records, farm credit balance sheets, property tax records, ear tag records, trucking and/or livestock hauling records, sales and purchase receipts, inventory records used for tax purposes, private insurance documents, chattel inspections, and canceled check documentation.
To be eligible for livestock injuries, producers must submit one of the following documents that indicate an injured animal: sales receipt from a livestock auction, sale barn or other similar livestock sales facility; private insurance documents; or processing plant receipt. At a minimum, these records must include livestock kind, type, and weight, and the price for which the animal was sold.
For more information on documentation requirements associated with receiving disaster-related assistance, contact your local FSA office.
There are options for Farm Service Agency loan customers during financial stress. If you are a borrower who is unable to make payments on a loan, contact your local FSA Farm Loan Manager to learn about the options available to you.
Farmers and ranchers also can access assistance through other entities in Nebraska that offer services during financially challenging times. The Rural Response Hotline provides referral and support services for farmers, ranchers and rural residents and their families. The number to call is (800) 464-0258 or visit the website at .
The Nebraska Department of Agriculture manages the Negotiations Program, which offers mediation services for agricultural borrowers, creditors and USDA program participants. Through this program, participants also can access free one-on-one education on agricultural financial and legal matters. For information, call (402) 471-4876 or visit the website at .
Producers participating in farm safety-net programs administered by USDA are required to abide by certain conditions on any land owned or farmed that is considered a wetland. To maintain compliance with wetland conservation provisions, producers must agree, by certifying on form AD-1026, they will not plant an agricultural commodity on a converted wetland or convert a wetland to produce an agricultural commodity.
Non-compliance could negatively impact producer benefits received through USDA programs administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA), the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the Risk Management Agency (RMA).
Specifically, persons are ineligible for benefits under certain FSA, NRCS and RMA programs if they plant an agricultural commodity on wetlands that were converted after Dec. 23, 1985, or if they convert a wetland after Nov. 28, 1990. Some examples of the conversion of a wetland are draining, dredging, tiling, leveling or removing woody vegetation. Program regulations indicate that even accidental planting of a small portion of a converted wetland must be treated as a wetland violation, and therefore would make the producer ineligible for USDA benefits on all farms for which they receive benefits.
Producers should contact their local USDA Service Center prior to tiling, clearing trees, dredging, land leveling, straightening a ditch, et cetera. For notification, the producer will be asked to complete FSA form AD-1026, identifying the area for the proposed activity on a map and informing what activity will be done. FSA then refers this information to NRCS, who will determine whether a wetland exists and whether there are any exemptions that would allow the producer to proceed with the project and not jeopardize safety-net benefits.
If a farm is found in violation of wetland provisions, all producers associated with the land (including their affiliates) are ineligible for program benefits and the violation could affect prior year payments.
In some cases, USDA conservation compliance policy allows for a producer who has had a wetland violation to offset that loss through mitigation to maintain eligibility for USDA benefits.
For more information on wetland conservation compliance, contact the your local county FSA Office.
The Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Farm Storage Facility Loan (FSFL) program provides low-interest financing to help you build or upgrade storage facilities and to purchase portable (new or used) structures, equipment and storage and handling trucks.
Eligible commodities include corn, grain sorghum, rice, soybeans, oats, peanuts, wheat, barley, minor oilseeds harvested as whole grain, pulse crops (lentils, chickpeas and dry peas), hay, honey, renewable biomass, fruits, nuts and vegetables for cold storage facilities, floriculture, hops, maple sap, rye, milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, meat and poultry (unprocessed), eggs, and aquaculture (excluding systems that maintain live animals through uptake and discharge of water). Qualified facilities include grain bins, hay barns and cold storage facilities for eligible commodities.
Loans exceeding $100,000 requires additional security.
You do not need to demonstrate the lack of commercial credit availability to apply. The loans are designed to assist a diverse range of farming operations, including small and mid-sized businesses, new farmers, operations supplying local food and farmers markets, non-traditional farm products, and underserved producers.
For more information, contact your local Farm Service Agency or visit fsa.usda.gov/pricesupport.
USDA is extending the application deadline for the Organic Dairy Marketing Assistance Program (ODMAP) 2024 to Dec.13, 2024. This extension gives organic dairy producers two additional weeks to apply for the program. Eligible producers include certified organic dairy operations that produce milk from cows, goats and sheep.
ODMAP 2024 helps mitigate market volatility, higher input and transportation costs, and unstable feed supply and prices that have created unique hardships in the organic dairy industry. Specifically, through ODMAP 2024, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is assisting organic dairy operations with projected marketing costs in 2024 calculated using their marketing costs in 2023.
ODMAP 2024 Program Improvements
Dairy producers who participate in ODMAP 2024 will benefit from improvements to provisions outlined in the program. Specifically, ODMAP 2024 provides a payment rate increase to $1.68 per hundredweight compared to the previous $1.10 per cwt. Additionally, the production cap has increased to nine million pounds compared to the previous five million pounds.
How ODMAP 2024 Works
FSA is providing financial assistance for a producer’s projected marketing costs in 2024 based on their 2023 costs. ODMAP 2024 provides a one-time cost-share payment based on marketing costs on pounds of organic milk marketed in the 2023 calendar year or estimated 2024 marketing costs for organic dairy operations that have increased milk production.
ODMAP 2024 provides financial assistance that immediately supports certified organic dairy operations during 2024 keeping organic dairy operations sustainable until markets return to more normal conditions.
How to Apply
FSA is now accepting applications through Dec. 13. To apply, producers should contact FSA at their local USDA Service Center. To complete the ODMAP 2024 application, producers must certify pounds of 2023 milk production, show documentation of their organic certification and submit a completed application form.
Organic dairy operations are required to provide their USDA certification of organic status confirming operation as an organic dairy in 2024 and 2023 along with the certification of 2023 milk production or estimated 2024 milk production in hundredweight.
ODMAP 2024 complements other assistance available to dairy producers, including Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC), with more than $36 million in benefits paid for the 2024 program year to date. Learn more on the FSA Dairy Programs webpage.
Nov. 20, 2024 – NAP application closing deadline for coverage for apples, aronia berries and grapes in the 2025 production season
Nov. 28, 2024 – USDA Service Centers closed for federal holiday
Dec. 2, 2024 - Final day to submit FSA County Committee Election Ballots
***Please note any above NAP calendar reference may not be inclusive for all NAP-covered crops; NAP participants should contact their County FSA Office to confirm important program deadlines.
November FSA Interest Rates
OPERATING/OWNERSHIP
Farm Operating: 4.5%
Farm Ownership: 5.125%
Farm Ownership – Limited Resource: 5%
Farm Ownership - Joint Financing: 3.125%
Farm Ownership - Down Payment: 1.5%
Emergency - Actual Loss: 3.75%
FARM STORAGE FACILITY LOAN
3-year term: 3.75%
5-year term: 3.75%
7-year term: 3.75%
10-year term: 3.875%
12-year term: 4.00%
MARKETING ASSISTANCE
Commodity Loan: 5.125%
It’s 1899, and as the world prepares for a new century, railroad tycoon Edward Henry Harriman, along with a large crew, embarks on a two-month expedition to catalog the flora and fauna of the Alaskan coast; Joshua Lionel Cowen invents and patents the electric flash-lamp; and aviation pioneer Wilbur Wright discovers wing warping for aircraft wings.
With the spirit of exploration and invention in the air, Congress recognized the vital role soil surveys play in guiding agricultural development and supporting community planning and resource development. On May 3, 1899, Congress authorized funds for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to investigate the soil resources of the United States in the field and laboratory, and the first soil surveys began. By the end of 1899, USDA mapped 720,000 acres and published four separate soil surveys in parts of Maryland, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Utah, and New Mexico.
After 125 years, USDA soil surveyors and partners continue to map soils in new areas, collecting data on what are called static soil properties, or those that change over thousands of years. They also revisit mapped soils to explore dynamic soil properties, such as soil organic carbon and structure, which change within the human timescale. These changes can be from natural factors, like soils eroding during a severe rain event, and human-caused factors, like soils building carbon as a result of good conservation practices.
Our knowledge of soils increases each year as we evolve with new technology, types of field and laboratory equipment, and ideas. Our experience observing, investigating, and researching in the field leads to new standards, methodology, and new and improved products for public use. Traditionally, we have conducted soil surveys on land to determine the best soils for growing corn, building a pond, maintaining wetlands, or supporting roads; however, today, we even conduct soil surveys from specialized boats in coastal zones!
The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is founded on the need to understand the soil resources of our nation. Data-driven and science-based, we fulfill a legislative mandate to inventory the soil resources and keep the soil survey relevant to ever-changing needs through the National Cooperative Soil Survey (NCSS).
We set standards in classification, mapping, and laboratory procedures with the largest and highest resolution inventory of natural resource data in the world used by our staff for conservation planning, application ranking criteria, and Highly Erodible Land determinations, among other services. The USDA NRCS’ world-renowned Kellogg Soil Survey Laboratory (KSSL) provides data and standards to the international community, as well as for our state conservation staff, supporting conservation activities involving soil health, wetlands, and ecological sites.
How Can Soil Surveys Help You?
Soil data assist farmers, ranchers, foresters, land managers, and conservation planners in effectively managing, conserving, and appraising their most valuable investment—the soil. The data can help determine soil-related hazards or limitations that affect home sites. It can help estimate the potential crop or forage production of a farmer’s land. Soil data can also help determine the suitability of soil for housing areas, onsite sewage disposal systems, pipelines, buildings, landfills, and recreation areas.
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Nebraska FSA and NRCS State Office
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Farm Service Agency
1121 Lincoln Mall Suite 330
Lincoln, NE 68508
Phone: (402) 437-5581
Fax: (844) 930-0237
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Natural Resources
Conservation Service
1121 Lincoln Mall Suite 360
Lincoln, NE 68508
Phone: (402) 437-5300
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Tim Divis, FSA
Deputy State Executive Director
timothy.divis@usda.gov
FSA State Office Programs Chiefs
Cathy Anderson, Product. & Compliance
Pat Lechner, Price Support & Conserv.
Mark Wilke, Farm Loans
Patty Wilke, Administrative Officer
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Robert Lawson, NRCS
State Conservationist
robert.lawson@usda.gov
FSA State Committee
Roy Stoltenberg, Cairo, Chair
Bill Armbrust, Elkhorn
Aaron LaPointe, Winnebago
Becky Potmesil, Alliance
Paula Sue Steffen, Humboldt
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Visit the Nebraska FSA website at www.fsa.usda.gov/ne.
Visit the Nebraska NRCS website at www.nrcs.usda.gov/ne.
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