Coffee Shop Talk with Daviess County FSA

Happy New Year! I hope this newsletter finds everyone well so far in 2021. Thanks for taking the time to read this month’s FSA updates. We finished off December with 1.45 inches of rainfall and snow melt compared to 1.84 inches of normal precipitation. The 2020 calendar year ended with total of 38.39 inches, which is 2.01 below normal for Daviess County.

Our office is busy with several different programs and signup going on right now. Below are dates and information for each program. Until further notice we will remain in our current operating status with our doors closed to the public, but we are available to assist through phone, email and utilizing the office windows. We appreciate your patience during this time.

ARC-PLC- Deadline Mar. 15
The 2018 farm bill reauthorized and updated the ARC and PLC programs. Ag Risk Coverage, or ARC provides income support on base acres when crop revenue declines below certain levels. Price Loss Coverage, or PLC, provides income support on base acres when the price for a covered commodity falls below certain levels.

ARCPLC Signup is currently open for the 2021 crop year, and the deadline is Mar. 15. Many producers’ contracts will be allowed to automatically carry over from 2020 and will not require a signature. However, if you have picked up a new farm, or if the ownership on a farm that you operate has changed since last year, a new contract (with a new set of signatures) will be required. If the deadline is missed, the farm will default to prior year elections and that farm forfeits any potential 2021 payments. Please call the office to check the status of your ARC PLC contracts.

CRP- Signup ends Feb. 12
General CRP Signup 56 is well underway in Daviess County. Please contact the office to schedule an appointment if you would like to offer land into CRP or find out more information. Offers can be for new cropland or expiring CRP land. Land must be clear of trees and noxious weeds and capable of being farmed in a normal manner. Land must be owned for a minimum of 1 year prior to being offered into CRP. General CRP offers are not first come first serve, instead all offers are submitted into a national ranking system after the end of the signup in February. Accepted offers would start Oct. 1, 2021. The maximum rental rate for Daviess County CRP during this general signup is $115 per acre.

Quality Loss Assistance (QLA)- Jan. 6 – Mar. 5
This new disaster program provides assistance to farmers for quality losses received when selling their grain as a result of a qualifying weather event. In Daviess County, QLA will be available for eligible producers who have suffered a dollar value loss greater than 5% on corn, soybeans, wheat, and grain sorghum due to the 2018 drought and 2019 flooding.

When applying, producers are asked to provide verifiable documentation to support claims of quality loss. For crops that have been sold, grading must have been completed within 30 days of harvest, or if stored long term, the COC will determine if the storage did or did not cause the quality loss.

Some acceptable forms of documentation include sales receipts from buyers, settlement sheets, truck or warehouse scale tickets, written sales contracts, similar records that represent actual and specific quality loss information. Producers who have verifiable proof of dollar value loss will be compensated at 70% of the loss amount.

As always please call or email with any questions and the staff here will be happy to assist you.

Mandi Bird
County Executive Director