Emergency Preparedness Resources

Purpose: Provides financial and technical assistance to rehabilitate farmland and conservation structures damaged by natural disasters (e.g., debris removal, leveling eroded land, rebuilding permanent fences, repairing terraces/waterways).
Cost-Share Structure: Covers up to 75% of eligible expenses, and up to 90% for limited-resource, beginning, or socially disadvantaged producers.
Critical Requirement: Pending the necessary federal disaster declaration, producers must contact our office as soon as damage is observed. Timely reporting and prior FSA approval are strictly required before any restoration work begins.

Purpose: Protects producers growing crops that do not have federal crop insurance against low yields, loss of inventory, or prevented planting due to natural disasters.
Coverage Details: Basic catastrophic protection (50% yield × 55% price) up to higher buy-up levels (up to 65% yield × 100% price).
Important Enrollment Note: Producers with a valid CCC-860 on file (Socially Disadvantaged, Limited Resource, Beginning, or Veteran Farmer/Rancher certification) are automatically enrolled in basic NAP coverage. However, all other program requirements—such as notices of loss, service fees/waivers, and crop acreage reporting—remain mandatory.

Purpose: Provides financial assistance to replant or rehabilitate qualifying trees, vines, and bushes lost to natural disasters (applicable to commercial fruit, nut, nursery, and Christmas tree growers).
Policy Updates: Current rules allow losses to be compensated beyond normal mortality levels without the previous 15% threshold. Reimbursement rates have increased to 65% for pruning, removal, salvage, and land preparation.
Timeline: Producers must apply promptly and complete all work within established program timelines.

Purpose: Compensates livestock producers for deaths in excess of normal mortality caused by adverse weather, disease, or attacks by federally protected animals. It covers injured livestock sold at a reduced value.
Payment Rates: Standard rates cover 75% of fair market value for most eligible causes, and 100% for predation by federally protected species. Expanded provisions now include coverage for unborn livestock losses and allow producer-specific market valuations where appropriate.

Complete Crop Acreage Reports & Register with FSA

Urge producers to file their crop acreage reports immediately if they have not done so.
If they are not registered with the USDA FSA, or if their farm records are outdated, encourage them to contact our office right away. Accurate, timely crop reporting is the foundation for NAP, TAP, LIP, and ECP eligibility.

Pay Particular Attention to Irrigation Systems

Document Components: Instruct producers to take detailed, close-up photos and videos of all irrigation infrastructure, including main lines, drip systems, pump stations, filtration units, and electrical panels, to establish pre-storm functionality.
Mitigate Damage: Advise producers to clear debris from drainage ditches, anchor loose piping, and secure electrical units or portable pumps located in flood-prone low zones before heavy rainfall begins.

Document Baseline Conditions Ahead of Time

Instruct producers to take clear, dated photographs and videos of all fields, orchards, vineyards, livestock areas, fences, waterways, and farm assets before storm events.
Advise them to maintain secure physical and digital copies of planting records, input receipts, sales documents, grazing records, and operational logs to verify pre-disaster conditions.

Maintain Inventory Readiness

Producers should actively update inventories of livestock, equipment, stored commodities, fertilizer/chemical stocks, and infrastructure. Keep these duplicates backed up in multiple off-site or cloud locations.

Enforce Safety Protocols During Storm Events

Remind producers to prioritize personal safety above all else during severe weather.
Only when conditions are completely safe should they document physical damage.
Once damage is identified, they must contact our office immediately to start the evaluation process and preserve their program eligibility.