USDA Update
By Eads USDA Service Center Staff
IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER:
- USDA Service Center – CLOSED Thursday, November 24th, Happy Thanksgiving!
- November 13th - Last day to remove hay from CRP fields
- CRP Routine Grazing – First grazing period October 1 – November 30th
- 2nd Tuesday each month – FSA Farm Loan personnel in Kiowa County FSA Office.
- NAP policy deadline - December 1st, 2016 - Purchase 2017 policy for Alfalfa, Grass, Mixed Forage
- December 5 – Last day to return County Committee Ballots
- December 16 – Deadline for CRP grassland initiative for small scale livestock grazing operations.
Disclaimer: Information in this UPDATE is pertinent to Kiowa County FSA only. Producers reading this and that do not have FSA interest in Kiowa County are advised to contact their local FSA Office.
COUNTY COMMITTEE BALLOTS
Eligible voters in the west portion of the county will be receiving County Committee ballots for the upcoming election in LAA (Local Administrative Area) 3 which is the Galatea Road to the Crowley County line.
Michael Zimmerman is the lone candidate for the County Committee position that is currently being held by Jeff Salisbury. Jeff is unable to seek re-election due to term limits.
The deadline to return COC ballots to the office is December 5th. The ballots will be counted at the USDA Service Center on December 8th.
NAP COVERAGE DEADLINE
Producers wishing to purchase 2017 NAP coverage on native grass or alfalfa need have until Thursday, December 1, 2016 to apply. Beginning Farmers or Ranchers and producers considered Socially Disadvantaged (women and minorities) do not have to pay to purchase a NAP policy; however they do need to contact the office to be certain the policy is in place for 2017 and complete required paperwork for eligibility.
CRP CONTINUOUS SIGNUP – 50
CRP Continuous Signup #50 was announced October 1st. Land located in the Lesser Prairie Chicken area or HELI (Highly Erodible Land Initiative). Land with a weighted soil erodibility number equal to or higher than 20 for the 3 predominant soils, qualify for this signup.
Nationally, USDA is close the 24 million acre CAP that is mandated by the 2014 Farm Bill. Producers who make offers to enroll into CRP will be ranked nationally; which is not the normal process for Continuous Signup’s. However, currently there are 23.9 million acres enrolled; therefore the maximum CAP on acres is very close to being reached. A General CRP signup in 2017 is highly unlikely.
The office encourages producers who are interested in offering land into Continuous CRP to contact the office so that paperwork can be initiated.
The website to check daily LDP rates is as follows:
http://www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-and-services/price-support/ldp-rates/index
Preauthorized Debit Available for Farm Loan Borrowers
USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) has implemented pre-authorized debit (PAD) for Farm Loan Program (FLP) borrowers. PAD is a voluntary and alternative method for making weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or annual payments on loans.
PAD payments are pre authorized transactions that allow the National Financial and Accounting Operations Center (NFAOC) to electronically collect loan payments from a customer’s account at a financial institution.
PAD may be useful for borrowers who use nonfarm income from regular wages or salary to make payments on loans or adjustment offers or for payments from seasonal produce stands. PAD can only be established for future payments.
To request PAD, customers, along with their financial institution, must fill out form RD 3550-28. This form has no expiration date, but a separate form RD 3550-28 must be completed for each loan to which payments are to be applied. A fillable form can be accessed on the USDA Rural Development (RD) website at http://www.rd.usda.gov/publications/regulations-guidelines. Click forms and search for “Form 3550-28.”
PAD is offered by FSA at no cost. Check with your financial institution to discuss any potential cost. Preauthorized debit has no expiration date, but you can cancel at any time by submitting a written request to your local FSA office. If a preauthorized debit agreement receives three payment rejections within a three month period, the preauthorized debt agreement will be cancelled by FSA. The payment amount and due date of your loan is not affected by a cancellation of preauthorized debit. You are responsible to ensure your full payment is made by the due date.
For more information about PAD, contact your local FSA office. To find a local FSA office, visit http://offices.usda.gov
USDA SERVICE CENTER CONTACT INFORMATION
Telephone 719-438-5851 FSA (Ext 2), NRCS (Ext 3). FSA Fax number: fax2mail 844-332-7501
E-mail individuals firstname.lastname@co.usda.gov (Example firstname.lastname@co.usda.gov, dawna.weirich, charla.ferris, hallie.barlow, marvin.watson, marlin.miller
KIOWA COUNTY FARM LOAN CONTACT INFO – CALL FOR AN APPOINTMENT
Telephone 719-336-3437 (ext2) Natalie Bond; natalie.bond@co.usda.gov; Mary Rhoades, mary.rhoades@co.usda.gov
SERVICE CENTER OFFICE HOURS:
Monday through Friday - 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. By appointment only on Friday.
FSA INFORMATION
For information on programs visit our website located at www.fsa.usda.gov or like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.
