The Emergency Relief Program (ERP) is an initiative of the Extending Government Funding and Delivery Emergency Assistance Act which President Biden signed into law on September 30th, 2021. Phase 1 of the program has kicked off as of May 25th, 2022 when letters were sent to affected producers who may be eligible to receive funding from the program. If a producer received an indemnity from a crop insurance policy or Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) from a qualifying loss during calendar years 2020 and 2021 they will have received a pre-filled application from USDA with an estimate of their potential ERP payment. These applications should be reviewed and cross checked with applicable claim summary worksheets from the producer’s policy. If will be important to verify that the indemnity received was due to a qualifying natural disaster:
- Wildfire
- Hurricane
- Flood
- Derechos
- Excessive Heat
- Winter Storms
- Freeze (includes polar vortex)
- Smoke exposure
- Excessive Moisture
- Qualifying drought
- Only eligible area in NYS was Suffolk county in 2020
- Or related condition
Producers should reach out to their crop insurance agent to confirm eligibility. ERP applications are to be returned to the Farm Service Agency by July 22nd, 2022.
Requirements of the Program
If a producer wishes to submit the ERP application, they will need to have the following forms on file with FSA:
- Form AD-2047, Customer Data Worksheet
- Form CCC-902, Farm Operating Plan for an individual or legal entity
- Form CCC-901, Member Information for Legal Entities (if applicable)
- Form FSA-510, Request for an Exception to the $125,000 Payment Limitation for Certain Programs (if applicable)
- Form AD-1026 Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification
Additionally, a producer will be required to maintain a crop insurance policy at 60% or better OR catastrophic NAP coverage for the next available two crop years. The final year to obtain this coverage is for the 2026 crop year.
Questions regarding eligibility should be directed to the producer’s crop insurance agent. General program questions can be answered by your local FSA office or through the following internet resources:
- Emergency Relief Program (usda.gov)
- USDA to Provide Approximately $6 Billion to Commodity and Specialty Crop Producers Impacted by 2020 and 2021 Natural Disasters
- Top 6 Emergency Relief Program Checklist Items for Eligible Farmers | Farmers.gov
- Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (usda.gov)
This is a general overview and should not take the place of the program provisions.
Sources –
https://www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-and-services/emergency-relief/index
https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2022/05/16/usda-provide-approximately-6-billion-commodity-and-specialty-crop
