Florence County, South Carolina Monthly Newsletter - December 22, 2025
In This Issue:
The 2025 Farm Service Agency County Committee Elections will begin on January 5, 2026, when ballots are mailed to eligible voters. The deadline to return ballots to local FSA offices, or to be postmarked, is February 2, 2026.
County committee members are an important component of the operations of FSA and provide a link between the agricultural community and USDA. Farmers and ranchers elected to county committees help deliver FSA programs at the local level, applying their knowledge and judgment to make decisions on commodity price support programs; conservation programs; incentive, indemnity and disaster programs for some commodities; emergency programs and eligibility. FSA committees operate within official regulations designed to carry out federal laws.
To be an eligible voter, farmers and ranchers 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.
- Participates or cooperates in any FSA program that is provided by law. A cooperating producer is someone who has provided information to FSA about their farming or ranching operation(s) but may not have applied or received program benefits.
Eligible voters in Local Administrative Area 3, who do not receive a ballot can obtain one from their local FSA county office. Customers can identify which LAA they or their farming operation is in by using our new GIS locator tool available at fsa.usda.gov/elections.
Newly elected committee members will take office March 2, 2026.
The candidate in this year’s election is:
Alton L Cribb III is nominated in LAA-3, Florence County, to serve as a committee member for a 3-year term beginning March 2, 2026. Mr. Cribb resides in Effingham, SC and has produced corn, soybeans, upland cotton, tobacco, and wheat during the course of his farming career. Mr. Cribb has been farming since 1997.
Mr. Cribb is willing to serve if elected.
More information on county committees can be found at fsa.usda.gov/elections or by contacting the Florence County FSA office.
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) reminds foreign investors with an interest in agricultural land in the United States that they are required to report their land holdings and transactions to USDA.
The Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) requires foreign investors who buy, sell or hold an interest in U.S. agricultural land to report their holdings and transactions to the USDA. Foreign investors must file AFIDA Report Form FSA-153 with the FSA county office in the county where the land is located. Large or complex filings may be handled by AFIDA headquarters staff in Washington, D.C.
According to CFR Title 7 Part 781, any foreign person who holds an interest in U.S. agricultural land is required to report their holdings no later than 90 days after the date of the transaction.
Foreign investors should report holdings of agricultural land totaling 10 acres or more used for farming, ranching or timber production, and leaseholds on agricultural land of 10 or more years. Tracts totaling 10 acres or less in the aggregate, and which produce annual gross receipts in excess of $1,000 from the sale of farm, ranch, forestry or timber products, must also be reported. AFIDA reports are also required when there are changes in land use, such as from agricultural to nonagricultural use. Foreign investors must also file a report when there is a change in the status of ownership.
The information from AFIDA reports is used to prepare an annual report to Congress. These annual reports to Congress, as well as more information, are available on the FSA AFIDA webpage.
Assistance in completing the FSA-153 report may be obtained from the local FSA office. For more information regarding AFIDA or FSA programs, contact the Florence County FSA Office (843-669-9686 ext. 2) or visit farmers.gov.
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A farmers.gov account provides self-service opportunities to Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) customers through a secure, authenticated access process.
A new feature now provides access to your current or prior year FSA-578, Report of Commodities (Nationwide Producer Print). Your FSA-578 contains annual crop acreage reporting information submitted to USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA). If you are a shareholder (operator, owner or other producer) for a crop on the acreage report, you will be able to view, save and/or print your selected annual FSA-578.
How to Access Your FSA-578’s
From the Land tab in your farmers.gov account, click Land Overview on the navigation drop-down. On the Land Overview page, you will see an information block that states “View and Print Your Acreage Reports” containing a View Your FSA-578 button.
Clicking the button will open a popup modal with a drop-down menu to select the acreage report year. Once you have selected a year, the View FSA-578 button becomes active. Clicking the button will open a new tab with a message indicating the PDF file is being loaded. Once the load is complete, the FSA-578, Report of Commodities (Nationwide Producer Print) PDF document is displayed. You can view, save and/or print the FSA-578 as needed.
If there is no acreage report information on file for the selected acreage report year, the PDF will display the message, “This producer does not have a producer print currently available.”
How to Access FSA-578s Using Your Representative Authority to Act on Behalf of Another Customer
Additionally, if you have been granted the authority to act on behalf of another individual or entity, you can use the yellow banner to “Switch Profile” and view the current or prior year FSA-578, Report of Commodities (Nationwide Producer Print) for the customer you on whose behalf you have been elected to act.
Contact your local FSA office for more information or questions regarding your FSA-578, Report of Commodities (Nationwide Producer Print) or if you have questions regarding establishing representative authority or do not see the expected representative authority options when you log in.
More information can be found in the farmers.gov Fact Sheet and video tutorials. Visit the farmers.gov Account page to log in or learn how to create an account.
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) 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 FSA, please contact your local USDA Service Center.
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A video series from NRCS and farmers.gov, Conservation at Work, presents short and easy to understand videos about popular conservation practices. These videos feature producers explaining how an individual practice helps their land and why they are using it.
The videos shine the spotlight on farmers, ranchers, and forestland owners from across the U.S. who explain why they’ve implemented the conservation practices and how they work on their land. They also provide insight into how each practice is helping them protect and improve resources and save time and money.
We’ve got videos showcasing high tunnels, no-till, cover crops, prescribed grazing, and many more.
Check out the Conservation at Work video series at farmers.gov/conservation/conservation-at-work.
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USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced it is implementing the Quality Loss (QL) option for additional crop insurance programs for the 2026 and succeeding crop years. QL will be available for the alfalfa seed, dry peas, dry beans, grass seed and triticale crop insurance programs.
RMA developed the QL option in response to the 2018 Farm Bill requirement to carry out research and development for an alternative method for adjusting quality losses that will not impact Actual Production History (APH). While initially created to improve coverage options for row crop producers, the option was expanded to perennial crop programs in the 2024 crop year.
Producers must elect QL by the sales closing date. The QL option may apply if a notice of loss is filed, regardless of whether an indemnity is received for that crop year. When elected, QL allows a producer to replace the post-quality adjusted production in their APH database with the pre-quality adjusted production, thereby increasing the actual yields for individual crop years.
Quality adjustment to production will be based on the applicable quality statements contained in the Special Provisions, or on applicable quality requirements allowed by the Crop Provisions or endorsements. The QL option is not available for policies insured under the Catastrophic Risk Protection Endorsement.
Contact a crop insurance agent to see how Federal Crop Insurance can meet the specific needs of your operation. Crop insurance is sold and delivered solely through private crop insurance agents. A list of crop insurance agents is available online at the RMA Agent Locator. Producers can learn more about crop insurance and the modern farm safety net at rma.usda.gov or by contacting their RMA Regional Office. RMA’s Basics for Beginners provides information for those new to crop insurance.
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Florence USDA Service Center
Florence County FSA
215 Third Loop Road Suite 200
Florence, SC 29505
Phone: 843-669-9686
Fax: 855-568-8785
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Florence County CED
Bridget Johnson
Bridget.Johnson@usda.gov
County Committee
Alton Cribb III, Chairperson
Roger Stuckey, Minority Advisor
Patrick E. Burch
Anthony Ward
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District Conversationist
Matthew Anderson
Matthew.Anderson@usda.gov
Farm Loan Manager
Jessica Deberry (Acting)
Jessica.Deberry@usda.gov
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Next County Committee Meeting
Wednesday, January 21, 2026 at 9:00 AM
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Program Analysts
Shannon Foxworth
Aidan Hyatt
Kenyon Hyman
Amy McCutchen
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Farm Loan Officers
Jessica Deberry
Lee White
Farm Loan Analyst
Diana Wike
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