Joint Newsletter - May 2026
In This Issue:
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) offers two types of set-aside programs to assist FSA direct loan borrowers. The set-aside programs are intended to help distressed borrowers as well as borrowers impacted by natural disasters.
Disaster Set-Aside Program
The Disaster Set-Aside Program (DSA) assists existing FSA direct loan borrowers who have been impacted by natural disasters. The DSA program provides short-term financial relief by allowing eligible borrowers to delay FSA direct loan payments that are due this year or next year (but not both). You may delay up to one full annual payment per loan and the delayed payment will be moved to the end of the loan term. You will not be required to pay this set-aside installment until the loan’s final due date.
The principal portion of the amount set-aside will continue to accrue interest at your loan’s existing interest rate.
To be eligible, borrowers must have operated a farm in a county declared a disaster area or a contiguous county at the time of the disaster. In addition, the borrower’s inability to make their upcoming payment must be due to the disaster.
To apply for DSA, borrowers must provide their local USDA Service Center with a letter requesting DSA, which must be signed by all parties liable for the debt. The letter must be provided to your local Service Center within eight months of the disaster declaration date. The application process also includes providing your actual production, income, and expense records for the last three years. FSA may also request additional information as needed to make an eligibility decision.
Distressed Borrower Set-Aside Program
FSA Direct Farm Loan Program borrowers whose loans were closed before Sept. 25, 2024, may be eligible for assistance under the Distressed Borrower Set-Aside Program (DBSA). Similar to DSA, DBSA also provides short-term financial relief by allowing eligible borrowers to delay FSA direct loan payments that are due this year or next year (but not both). You may delay up to one full annual payment per loan and the delayed payment will be moved to the end of the loan term. You will not be required to pay this set-aside installment until the loan’s final due date.
An increased benefit with DBSA is that the principal portion of the set-aside will accrue interest at a reduced rate of 0.125% rather than your loan’s existing interest rate.
To be eligible for DBSA, the borrower must demonstrate financial distress, but their inability to make the upcoming payment does not need to be due to a disaster.
The DBSA application process is similar to DSA as borrowers must provide their local USDA Service Center with a letter requesting DBSA, which must be signed by all parties liable for the debt. The application process also includes providing your actual production, income, and expense records for the last three years. FSA may also request additional information as needed to make an eligibility decision.
Important Factors for Both DSA and DBSA:
FSA direct loan borrowers are not able to obtain more than one set-aside per loan. Borrowers also cannot obtain both a DSA and DBSA simultaneously on the same loan. In addition, FSA direct loans with less than two years remaining are not eligible for a DSA or DBSA. Other eligibility requirements apply; we encourage you to contact your local Service Center for more information.
Both DSA and DBSA are intended to provide short-term relief for situations where borrowers anticipate the ability to resume paying their full annual installment(s) in the following year. If you require a more long-term form of financial relief, FSA has other potential options available through primary loan servicing (PLS).
For more information on DSA, DBSA, or PLS, please contact your the local USDA County Service Center. You may also visit fsa.usda.gov.
Additional information, eligibility criteria and program limitations may be found within the Disaster Set-Aside and Distressed Borrower Set-Aside Program fact sheets.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) in the State of Hawaii, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands announced the County Committee Election results. All recently elected county committee members took office on March 2, 2026.
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands – LAA 2, Jesus Manibusan Castro
Guam County – LAA 2, Michelle Crisostomo
Hawaii County – LAA 3, Roger Uchima
Honolulu County – LAA 3, Racquel Achiu
Kauai County – LAA 2, Godwin Esaki
Maui County – LAA 3, Faith Tuipulotu
Every FSA office is served by a county committee made up of local farmers, ranchers and foresters who are elected by local producers.
Nationwide, more than 7,700 dedicated members of the agricultural community serve on FSA county committees. The committees are comprised of three to 11 members who serve three-year terms. Committee members play a key role in how FSA delivers disaster recovery, safety-net, conservation, commodity and price support programs, as well as making decisions on county office employment and other agricultural issues.
For more information, visit the FSA website at fsa.usda.gov/elections or contact your local Farm Service Agency office, click here for the County Office locator.
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) has noticed a rise in fraudulent scams that target FSA farm loan customers by obtaining publicly available information about your FSA Farm Program participation or Farm Loan information. These unauthorized contacts are made through email, text messages, phone calls, or social media to gain your personal information so the scammer can access your bank account or gain additional personal information.
Signs of a Scam:
- Emails or messages urging immediate action or requesting personal details.
- Unexpected attachments or links in emails from unknown sources.
- Calls or texts claiming to be from FSA requesting passwords, PINs, Social Security numbers, or credit card information.
- Offers that seem too good to be true, particularly investment or debt relief schemes.
- Messages from unfamiliar social media accounts or door-to-door solicitations related to banking.
How to Protect Yourself:
- Always verify communications are coming from official sources. If you have concerns about a contact being genuine, please reach out to your local FSA Service Center directly.
- Do not click on links or download attachments from suspicious emails or texts.
- Use strong, unique passwords and enable two-factor authentication when available.
- Report suspicious activity to FSA immediately and, if applicable, submit a report to the U.S. General Services Administration here.
If you have questions about your FSA accounts, including your farm loans, contact your USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov.
USDA is reducing red tape around the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)-related reviews, which will improve conservation delivery to America’s farmers and ranchers.
NEPA requires all federal agencies to consider the environmental impact of their proposed actions before deciding whether and how to proceed. NEPA’s aims are to ensure that agencies consider the potential environmental effects of their proposed actions in their decision-making processes and encourage public engagement in that process.
To comply with NEPA, agencies determine the appropriate level of review for a proposed action. Where required, these levels of review may be documented in an environmental impact statement (EIS), an environmental assessment (EA), or categorical exclusion. A federal agency may establish categorical exclusions — categories of actions that the agency has determined normally do not significantly affect the quality of the human environment — in its agency NEPA procedures.
Notice with Revised Guidelines
The notice describes the categories of proposed actions for which NRCS intends to apply the categorical exclusions, the considerations that NRCS will use in determining the applicability of the categorical exclusions and the consultation between the agencies on the use of the categorical exclusions, including application of extraordinary circumstances. The notice is available at the NRCS NEPA website under the “NRCS NEPA Regulations, Guidance, and Related Documents.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) in all State of Hawaii counties, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) is accepting applications for the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) to address damages from the Kona Low storms and Typhoon Sinlaku. ECP provides cost-share and technical assistance to producers to help restore farmland to pre-disaster conditions following a qualifying natural disaster.
Approved ECP applicants may receive up to 75% of the cost of approved restoration activities, with a maximum cost-share of $500,000, per natural disaster event.
ECP signup deadlines:
- State of Hawaii Counties — June 1, 2026
- Guam & CNMI Counties — June 29, 2026
Approved ECP practices include:
- Removing debris from farmland
- Grading, shaping, and releveling
- Replacing or repairing permanent fencing
- Restoring conservation structures
Producers should contact FSA before beginning any work to ensure all required compliance measures are completed to remain eligible for cost‑share payments. ECP also allows advance payments of up to 25% of the total allowable cost for approved practices before restoration begins. Advance payments must be spent within 60 days.
Producers who lease federally owned or managed lands, including tribal trust lands and state-owned lands, are eligible to participate in ECP.
Please note that conservation issues that existed prior to the qualifying natural disaster are not eligible for ECP assistance.
More Information
To learn more about ECP, producers may contact their local Farm Service Agency County Office using the information below or visit farmers.gov/protection-recovery.
Guam & CNMI: (671) 300‑8550
Hawaii County: (808) 933‑8334
Honolulu: (808) 861‑8538
Kauai: (808) 975‑9529
Maui: (808) 214‑1740
| Farm Operating - Direct |
4.750% |
| Farm Operating - Microloan |
4.750% |
| Farm Ownership - Direct |
5.750% |
| Farm Ownership - Microloan |
5.750% |
| Farm Ownership - Direct, Joint Financing |
3.750% |
| Farm Ownership - Down Payment |
1.750% |
| Emergency Loan - Amount of Actual Loss |
3.750% |
| Effective as of May 1, 2026 |
June 1, 2026 - Deadline to apply for Emergency Conservation Program for the State of Hawaii
June 29,2026 - Deadline to apply for Emergency Conservation Program in Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas
March 1, 2027 – Deadline to apply for 2026 Livestock Forage Losses for Hawaii and Maui County
USDA in Hawaii and Pacific Basin
Service Center Locator
Acting State Executive Director - Arthur Keyes
Natural Resources Conservation Service
State Director - J.B. Martin
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