Trump Announces $19 Billion Relief Package for Agriculture

WASHINGTON, DC – Late Friday, President Trump announced a $19 billion program to assist agriculture suffering through two years of a trade war and now the effects of the Great Lockdown. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue explained that $16 billion will be earmarked for direct payments to farmers and ranchers while $3 billion will be used to purchase produce and dairy for food banks and local partners.

As for the direct payments, North Dakota Senator John Hoeven, Chairman of the Senate Ag Appropriations Committee explained the $16 billion in direct payments to farmers and ranchers includes:

  • $9.6 billion for the livestock industry ($5.1 billion for cattle, $2.9 billion for dairy, $1.6 billion for hogs),
  • $3.9 billion for row crops,
  • $2.1 billion for specialty crops, and
  • $500 million for other crops.

Hoeven says producers will receive a single payment determined using:

  1. price losses that occurred January 1 – April 15, 2020 (85 percent of price loss during that period), and
  2. a second payment for expected losses from April 15 through the next two quarters (30 percent of expected losses).

The payment limit is $125,000 per commodity with an overall limit of $250,000 per individual or entity. Qualified commodities must have experienced a 5 percent price decrease between January and April. USDA is expediting the rulemaking process for the direct payment program and expects to begin sign-up for the new program in early May and to get payments out to producers by the end of May or early June.

The programs are made available using $9.5 billion in emergency funding through the CARES Act, as well as USDA’s existing Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) funding and current Section 32 authority. Additionally, Sen. Hoeven secured a $14 billion replenishment of CCC, which will be available in July to assist farmers and ranchers under the CARES Act.

According to data released by Dr. John Newton (American Farm Bureau Federation Chief Economist), every major crop will be included: