The Farm Service Agency is unique in the fact that it runs on a farmer-elected county committee system. County committees are made up of farmers and ranchers elected by other producers in their communities to guide the delivery of farm programs at the local level. Committee members play a critical role in the day-to-day operations of FSA. Committees meet once a month or as needed to make important decisions on disaster and conservation programs, emergency programs, commodity price support loan programs, county office employment and other agricultural issues. Members serve three-year terms.
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In 2019, LAA-2 (Local Administrative Area-Two) is up for election in Daviess County, which consists of Grand River, Union, Jackson, Monroe and Harrison townships. If you know someone who would be a good county committee member, the nomination period will run from June 14 through Aug. 1. The nominee must reside in one of those townships and participate in at least one FSA program. Larry Belshe currently represents this area of the county.
All nomination forms for the 2019 election must be postmarked or received in the service center by Aug. 1, 2019. For more information on FSA county committee elections and appointments, refer to the FSA fact sheet: Eligibility to Vote and Hold Office as a COC Member available online at: www.fsa.usda.gov/elections.
USDA Reopens Continuous CRP Signup
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) will accept applications beginning June 3, 2019, for certain practices under the continuous Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) signup and will offer extensions for expiring CRP contracts. The 2018 Farm Bill reauthorized CRP, one of the country’s largest conservation programs.
This year’s signup will include such continuous practices as grassed waterways, filter strips, riparian buffers, wetland restoration and others. There are typically no entire field enrollments eligible under a continuous signup. These practices are designed for environmentally sensitive ground and target specific conservation goals. For ground to be enrolled in CRP it must have been planted to an annual crop for 4 out of 6 years between 2012 and 2017 and must be owned for one year prior to being offered into the program.
FSA will also open a CRP general signup in December 2019 for producers who have expiring CRP contracts in 2019 and 2020, as well as a CRP Grasslands signup later. In General CRP signup, entire fields can be offered.