Kentucky FSA Newsletter - February 2026
In This Issue:
January ended with cold temperatures and unforgiving snow and ice. February has been mild so far but that comes with its own frustrations with muddy conditions left behind by the melting snow and ice. While you are waiting for field conditions to improve, it is a good time to check in with your local FSA office to complete some of your yearly eligibility paperwork and verify that you have signed up for our recent programs. If you’re interested in financing opportunities, it’s time to start your loan applications to ensure that funds are available when you need them.
Our FSA offices have been busy with loan processing and farm program activity. Enrollment is open for the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program. Pre-filled FBA applications are available online to producers who have a Login.gov account who timely filed their 2025 crop acreage report for eligible commodities. Producers who have a Login.gov account can access and submit their pre-filled application from fsa.usda.gov/fba or you can request your pre-filled FBA application from your FSA county office. Additionally, sign-up is underway for the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program (SDRP). Earlier this month, we announced the 2026 Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) enrollment periods for Continuous and General.
Secretary Rollins also announced the framework for the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers (ASCF) program. Eligible specialty crop farmers should ensure their 2025 acreage reporting is factual and accurate by 5 p.m. ET on March 13, 2026. FSA staff are moving as quickly and efficiently as possible to provide service associated with all these programs.
FBA and modernization through Login.gov are both continued efforts of FSA to support American farmers. FSA is dedicated to providing the service and assistance that farmers need to feed, fuel, and clothe the nation. Every day we continue to put Farmers First.
Respectfully,
David Wayne, State Executive Director
Kentucky FSA
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The Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) provides assistance to you for livestock deaths in excess of normal mortality caused by adverse weather, disease and attacks by animals reintroduced into the wild by the federal government or protected by federal law.
For disease losses, FSA county committees can accept veterinarian certifications that livestock deaths were directly related to adverse weather and unpreventable through good animal husbandry and management.
For 2025 livestock losses, you must file a notice of loss, provide the following supporting documentation, and application for payment to your local FSA office by March 2, 2026.
- Proof of death documentation
- Copy of grower’s contracts
- Proof of normal mortality documentation
- Livestock beginning inventory documentation
USDA has established normal mortality rates for each type and weight range of eligible livestock, i.e. Adult Beef Cow = 1.5% and Non-Adult Beef Cattle = 5%. These established percentages reflect losses that are considered expected or typical under “normal” conditions.
For more information, contact your local FSA county office or visit fsa.usda.gov
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the enrollment periods for agricultural producers and landowners to submit offers for the Continuous and General Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is accepting offers for Continuous CRP starting Feb. 12, 2026, through March 20, 2026. Enrollment for General CRP will run from March 9, 2026, through April 17, 2026. FSA will announce dates for Grassland CRP signup in the near future.
CRP is USDA’s flagship conservation program, providing financial and technical support to agricultural producers and landowners who place unproductive or marginal cropland under contract for 10-15 years and who agree to voluntarily convert the land to beneficial vegetative cover to improve water quality, prevent soil erosion and support wildlife habitat. The Continuing Appropriations, Agriculture, Legislative Branch, Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Extensions Act, 2026, extends FSA’s authority to administer CRP through Sept. 30, 2026.
Continuous CRP (Signup 65)
FSA will batch Continuous CRP offers submitted by interested agricultural producers and landowners. Offers to re-enroll expiring CRP continuous acreage will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis. New acreage offered in continuous CRP practices will be considered for acceptance on a first-come, first-serve basis if they support USDA conservation priorities including but not limited to practices that address water quality, such as filter strips and grass waterways, and practices that restore native ecosystems or target specific resource concerns.
The first Continuous CRP batching period ends on March 20, 2026. Offers submitted after this date will be considered for acceptance in subsequent batching periods if acreage remains available.
Continuous CRP participants voluntarily offer environmentally sensitive lands, typically smaller parcels than offered through General CRP including wetlands, riparian buffers, and varying wildlife habitats. In return, they receive annual rental payments and cost-share assistance to establish long-term, resource-conserving vegetative cover.
Continuous CRP enrollment options include:
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Clean Lakes, Estuaries and Rivers (CLEAR) Initiative: Prioritizes water quality practices on the land that, if enrolled, will help reduce sediment loadings, nutrient loadings, and harmful algal blooms. The vegetative covers also contribute to increased wildlife populations.
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CLEAR30 (a component of the CLEAR Initiative): Offers additional incentives for water quality practice adoption and can be accessed in 30-year contracts.
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Highly Erodible Land Initiative (HELI): Producers and landowners can enroll in CRP to establish long-term cover on highly erodible cropland that has a weighted erodibility index greater than or equal to 20.
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Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP): Addresses high priority conservation objectives of states and Tribal governments on agricultural lands in specific geographic areas.
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State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement Initiative (SAFE): Restores vital habitat in order to meet high-priority state wildlife conservation goals.
General CRP (Signup 66)
General CRP offers are submitted through a competitive bid process. After the enrollment period closes, General CRP offers are ranked and scored by FSA, using nationally established environmental benefits criteria. USDA will announce accepted offers once ranking and scoring for all offers is completed. In addition to annual rental payments, approved General CRP participants may also be eligible for cost-share assistance to establish long-term, resource-conserving vegetative cover.
Producers and landowners interested in participating in CRP should contact their local FSA county office.
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USDA announced the next phase in the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program (FBA), the eligible commodity per-acre payment rates. In 2026, $12 billion will be paid to American farmers. Of that amount, $11 billion consists of one-time FBA program payments.
Eligible Row Crop Commodities and Payment Rates:
Below are the payment rates for the FBA eligible commodities that triggered a payment.
Commodity, Per Acre Payment Rates
- Barley: $20.51
- Canola: $23.57
- Chickpeas (Large): $26.46
- Chickpeas (Small): $33.36
- Corn: $44.36
- Cotton: $117.35
- Flax: $8.05
- Lentils: $23.98
- Mustard: $23.21
- Oats: $81.75
- Peanuts: $55.65
- Peas: $19.60
- Rice: $132.89
- Safflower: $24.86
- Sesame: $13.68
- Sorghum: $48.11
- Soybeans: $30.88
- Sunflower: $17.32
- Wheat: $39.35
Eligibility, Program Applications, and Crop Insurance Linkage
FBA payments are based on 2025 planted acres, Economic Research Service cost of production, and the World Agriculture Supply and Demand Estimate Report. Double crop acres, including all initial and subsequently planted crops, are eligible. Prevent plant acres are not eligible.
All intended row crop uses are eligible for FBA except grazing, volunteer stands, experimental, green manure, crops left standing and abandoned or cover crops.
Crop insurance linkage is not required; however, USDA strongly urges producers to take advantage of the new risk management tools provided for in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) to best protect against future price risk and volatility. The OBBBA federal crop insurance improvements include expanding benefits for beginning farmers and ranchers, increasing coverage options, and making crop insurance more affordable.
Specialty Crop Assistance
Of the $12 billion being provided by the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act, up to $11 billion is being directed to eligible row crop producers and the remaining $1 billion of the $12 billion in assistance is reserved for specialty crops and sugar. Timelines for payments to producers of these crops are still under development and require additional understanding of market impacts and economic needs.
Producers, including specialty crop producers and stakeholder groups, can submit questions to farmerbridge@usda.gov.
More information on FBA is available online at https://www.fsa.usda.gov/fba or you can contact your local USDA FSA county office.
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The Farm Service Agency (FSA) makes loans to youth to establish and operate agricultural income-producing projects in connection with 4-H clubs, FFA and other agricultural groups. Projects must be planned and operated with the help of the organization advisor, produce sufficient income to repay the loan and provide the youth with practical business and educational experience. The maximum loan amount is $10,000.
Youth Loan Eligibility Requirements:
- Be a citizen of the United States (which includes Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) or a legal resident alien
- Be 10 years to 20 years of age
- Comply with FSA’s general eligibility requirements
- Conduct a modest income-producing project in a supervised program of work as outlined above
- Demonstrate capability of planning, managing and operating the project under guidance and assistance from a project advisor. The project supervisor must recommend the youth loan applicant, along with providing adequate supervision.
For help preparing the application forms, contact your local USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov.
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The USDA is launching a new online portal to streamline reporting of transactions involving U.S. agricultural land by foreign persons, which can include businesses and governments, under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978 (AFIDA). The new online portal is part of a broader effort to strengthen enforcement and protect American farmland as USDA continues its implementation of the National Farm Security Action Plan.
The new online portal is available at afida.landmark.usda.gov. Users can access the portal with Login.gov, a sign in service that provides secure online access to participate in certain government programs and reporting requirements.
The new digital portal will gather the same information found on the current form FSA-153 and those subject to filing may still file using the current FSA-153 hard copy form if desired. However, filers should not duplicate filings by using both submission options.
About the National Farm Security Action Plan
One of the key tenets of USDA’s National Farm Security Action Plan (PDF, 1.2 MB) is strengthening processes around disclosure of foreign persons who have an interest in U.S. farmland. This historic plan, announced in July 2025, calls for aggressive implementation of reforms to the AFIDA process including improved verification and monitoring of collected AFIDA data. In addition to the new portal, USDA published an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for AFIDA in December 2025.
About AFIDA
The new portal is part of USDA’s efforts to streamline its process for electronic submission and retention of AFIDA disclosures, as initially required by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. Today USDA also shared its annual AFIDA report for 2024 with Congress, which is available online. The report lists foreign holdings of U.S. agricultural land as 46 million acres, as of December 31, 2024 and includes a section on land held and acquired by China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea in recent years. The data obtained from AFIDA disclosures are used in the preparation of an annual report to Congress, which is published online.
The AFIDA regulations define the term “foreign person” and specifies the information that must be included in the report. AFIDA focuses on foreign persons who hold direct or indirect interest in the agricultural land, provided those foreign persons with an indirect interest have “significant interest or substantial control” in the direct interest holder.
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USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is delivering more than $16 billion in total Congressionally approved disaster relief. FSA is now accepting applications for assistance through the second stage of the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program (SDRP) from agricultural producers who suffered eligible non-indemnified, uncovered or quality crop losses due to qualifying natural disasters in 2023 and 2024.
Stage Two covers eligible crop, tree, bush and vine losses that were not covered under Stage One program provisions, including non-indemnified (shallow loss), uncovered and quality losses. Although the majority of payments from the first stage are already in the hands of producers helping them prepare for and invest in the next crop year, Stage One assistance, announced in July, remains available to producers who received an indemnity under crop insurance or the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) for eligible crop losses due to qualifying 2023 and 2024 natural disaster events.
The deadline to apply for both Stage One and Stage Two assistance is April 30, 2026.
SDRP Stage Two Program Details
SDRP Stage Two provides assistance for eligible crop, tree, bush and vine losses not covered under Stage One, including:
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Non-Indemnified Losses (Including Shallow Losses)
- Insured losses through federal crop insurance that did not trigger a crop insurance indemnity.
- Losses with NAP coverage that did not trigger a NAP payment.
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Uncovered Losses (Uninsured Losses)
- Includes losses that were not insured through federal crop insurance or NAP.
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Quality Losses
- Includes quality losses to commodities indicated by:
- A decrease in value based on discounts due to the physical condition of the crop supported by applicable grading factors
- A decline in the nutritional value of forage crops supported by documented forage tests.
- Producers will certify to an SDRP quality loss percentage.
FSA is establishing block grants with Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, and Massachusetts that cover crop losses; therefore, producers with losses on land physically located in these states are not eligible for SDRP program payments.
For information on program eligibility and to download an application checklist, visit fsa.usda.gov/sdrp.
More information will be provided in early 2026 regarding a separate enrollment period for quality losses covered by SDRP Stage One as well as for insured producers in Puerto Rico who were not included in Stage One because data was not available when pre-filled applications were mailed.
To make an appointment to apply, call please contact your local USDA Service Center.
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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, controlled atmosphere storage, floriculture, hops, malted small grains, maple sap, maple syrup, 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 up to $50,000 can be secured by a promissory note/security agreement, loans between $50,000 and $100,000 may require additional security, and loans exceeding $100,000 require 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 USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov/pricesupport.
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The USDA Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Direct Farm Ownership loans can help farmers and ranchers become owner-operators of family farms, improve and expand current operations, increase agricultural productivity, and assist with land tenure to save farmland for future generations.
There are three types of Direct Farm Ownership Loans: regular, down payment and joint financing. FSA also offers a Direct Farm Ownership Microloan option for smaller financial needs up to $50,000.
Joint financing allows FSA to provide more farmers and ranchers with access to capital. FSA lends up to 50 percent of the total amount financed. A commercial lender, a state program or the seller of the property being purchased, provides the balance of loan funds, with or without an FSA guarantee. The maximum loan amount for a joint financing loan is $600,000, and the repayment period for the loan is up to 40 years.
The operation must be an eligible farm enterprise. Farm Ownership loan funds cannot be used to finance nonfarm enterprises and all applicants must be able to meet general eligibility requirements. Loan applicants are also required to have participated in the business operations of a farm or ranch for at least three years out of the 10 years prior to the date the application is submitted. The applicant must show documentation that their participation in the business operation of the farm or ranch was not solely as a laborer.
For more information about farm loans, contact your local USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov.
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Farm Loan Programs
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Farm Programs
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90-Day Treasury Bill
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3.75%
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Farm Storage Facility Loans
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3 Year
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3.625%
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Farm Operating Loans - Direct
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4.625%
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Farm Storage Facility Loans
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5 Year
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3.75%
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Farm Ownership Loans - Direct
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5.75%
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Farm Storage Facility Loans
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7 Year
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4.0%
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Limited Resource Loans
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5.000%
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Farm Storage Facility Loans
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10 Year
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4.125%
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Farm Ownership Loans - Direct FO Down Payment
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1.75%
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Farm Storage Facility Loans
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12 Year
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4.375%
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Emergency Loans
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3.75%
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Commodity Loans
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4.5%
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CCC Borrowing Rate
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3.50%
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Kentucky FSA State Office
771 Corporate Dr., Ste 205
Lexington, KY 40503
Phone: 859-224-7601
State Webpage
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Contact your local USDA Service Center for assistance with FSA loans or programs
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Kentucky FSA State Committee
Sharon Walker Furches, Chair (Murray)
Tyler Ferguson, Member (Flatgap)
Mark Jenkins, Member (Hopkinsville)
David Andrew Langley, Member (Glendale)
Timothy Wayne White, Member (Lexington)
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