On March 12, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC), along with Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-Monterey), Kat Cammack (R-FL-03), Zoe Lofgren (D-Monterey), and Austin Scott (R-GA-08), announced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to improve access to federal agriculture disaster programs.
The Fair Access to Agriculture Disaster Programs Act would address outdated adjusted gross income (AGI) limitations that prevent many full-time farmers from accessing crucial USDA disaster programs. These limitations have not kept pace with inflation, and specialty crop producers, particularly those affected by disasters like flooding in California, have faced significant barriers to receiving aid.
Specifically, the Fair Access to Agriculture Disaster Programs Act would exempt the AGI limitation for farms that get 75% of their income from farming or related farming practices including agri-tourism, direct-to-consumer marketing of agricultural products, sale of agricultural equipment owned by person or entity, and other agriculture-related activities, as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture. This would apply to the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP); Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP); Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP); Tree Assistance Program (TAP); and, Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP).
View the one-pager here or the full text here.
Contact RCRC Senior Policy Advocate, John Kennedy, for additional information.