USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is now accepting applications for ELAP, LFP and LIP until March 1 following the end of the calendar year in which the disaster circumstances occurred. For 2024 program applications, which are being accepted at FSA offices across the nation right now, the deadline to apply for this assistance is March 3, 2025, because March 1 falls on a Saturday.
USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is accepting enrollments and elections for the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) for 2025 from Jan. 21 to April 15. ARC and PLC provide financial protections to farmers from substantial drops in crop prices or revenues and are vital economic safety nets for most American farms. The American Relief Act, 2025 extended many Farm Bill-authorized programs for another year, including ARC and PLC.
Producers can elect coverage and enroll in ARC-County (ARC-CO) or PLC, which provide crop-by-crop protection, or ARC-Individual (ARC-IC), which protects the entire farm. Although election changes for 2025 are optional, producers must enroll through a signed contract each year. Also, if a producer has a multi-year contract on the farm it will continue for 2025 unless an election change is made.
If producers do not submit their election revision by the April 15 deadline, their election remains the same as their 2024 election for commodities on the farm from the prior year. Farm owners cannot enroll in either program unless they have a share interest in the cropland.
Covered commodities include barley, canola, large and small chickpeas, corn, crambe, flaxseed, grain sorghum, lentils, mustard seed, oats, peanuts, dry peas, rapeseed, long grain rice, medium grain rice, safflower seed, seed cotton, sesame, soybeans, sunflower seed and wheat.
USDA also reminds producers that ARC and PLC elections and enrollments can impact eligibility for some crop insurance products including Supplemental Coverage Option, Enhanced Coverage Option and, for cotton producers, the Stacked Income Protection Plan (commonly referred to as STAX).
Is the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program Right for You?
Farmers and ranchers rely on crop insurance to protect themselves from disasters and unforeseen events, but not all crops are insurable through the USDA’s Risk Management Agency. The Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) provides producers another option to obtain coverage against disaster for these crops. NAP provides financial assistance to producers of non-insurable crops impacted by natural disasters that result in lower yields, crop losses, or prevents crop planting.
Commercially produced crops and agricultural commodities for which crop insurance is not available are generally eligible for NAP. Eligible crops include those grown specifically for food, fiber, livestock consumption, biofuel or biobased products, or value loss crops such as aquaculture, Christmas trees, ornamental nursery, and others. Contact your local FSA office to see which crops are eligible in your state and county.
Eligible causes of loss include drought, freeze, hail, excessive moisture, excessive wind or hurricanes, earthquake and flood. These events must occur during the NAP policy coverage period, before or during harvest, and the disaster must directly affect the eligible crop. For guidance on causes of loss not listed, contact your local FSA county office.
Interested producers apply for NAP coverage using FSA form CCC-471, “Application for Coverage,” and pay the applicable service fee at the FSA office where their farm records are maintained. These must be filed by the application closing date, which varies by crop. Contact your local FSA office to verify application closing dates and ensure coverage for eligible NAP crops.
At the time of application, each producer acknowledges they have received the NAP Basic Provisions, which describes NAP requirements for coverage. NAP participants must report crop acreage shortly after planting and provide verifiable or reliable crop production records when required by FSA.
Producers are required to pay service fees which vary depending on the number of crops and number of counties your operation is located in. The NAP service fee is the lesser of $325 per crop or $825 per producer per administrative county, not to exceed a total of $1,950 for a producer with farming interests in multiple counties. Premiums also apply when producers elect higher levels of coverage with a maximum premium of $15,750 per person or legal entity.
A producer’s certification on Form CCC-860 Socially Disadvantaged, Limited Resource, Beginning and Veteran Farmer or Rancher Certification may serve as an application for basic NAP coverage for all eligible crops beginning with crop year 2022. These producers will have all NAP-related service fees for basic coverage waived, in addition to a 50 percent premium reduction if higher levels of coverage are elected.
USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is accepting applications for Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) for the 2025 coverage year from Jan. 29 to March 31. DMC is a voluntary risk management program that offers protection to dairy producers when the difference between the all-milk price and the average feed price (the margin) falls below a certain dollar amount selected by the producer. The American Relief Act, 2025 extended many Farm Bill-authorized programs for another year, including DMC.
DMC offers different levels of coverage, even an option that is free to producers, minus a $100 administrative fee. The administrative fee is waived for dairy producers who are considered limited resource, beginning, socially disadvantaged or a military veteran.
DMC payments are calculated using updated feed and premium hay costs, making the program more reflective of actual dairy producer expenses. These updated feed calculations use 100% premium alfalfa hay. For more information on DMC, visit the DMC webpage or contact your local USDA Service Center.
New Jersey Counties Eligible for Emergency Loans
Several New Jersey Counties have been declared as either primary or contiguous disaster areas using the Secretarial Disaster Designation process. Under this designation, if you have operations in any primary or contiguous county, you are eligible to apply for low interest Emergency Loans.
Farmers in the following counties are eligible for Emergency Loans:
Secretarial Designation S5908 – New Jersey
For Drought beginning on 5/19/2024
New Jersey Primary Counties: Gloucester, Salem
New Jersey contiguous counties: Atlantic, Camden, Cumberland
Loan application deadline: 08/11/2025
Secretarial Designation S5907 – New Jersey
For Drought beginning on 6/05/2024
New Jersey Primary Counties: Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland
New Jersey contiguous counties: Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Ocean, Salem
Loan application deadline: 08/11/2025
Secretarial Designation S5906 – New Jersey
For Drought and Excessive Heat beginning on 6/01/2024
New Jersey Primary Counties: Burlington, Camden, Ocean
New Jersey contiguous counties: Atlantic, Gloucester, Mercer, Monmouth
Loan application deadline: 08/11/2025
Secretarial Designation S5905 – New Jersey
For Drought and Excessive Heat beginning on 6/25/2024
New Jersey Primary Counties: Hunterdon, Somerset
New Jersey contiguous counties: Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Union, Warren
Loan application deadline: 08/11/2025
Secretarial Designation S5875 – New York
For Hurricane Debby from 08/05/2024 – 08/10/2024
New Jersey contiguous counties: Sussex, Passaic
Loan application deadline: 07/28/2025
Secretarial Designation S5889 – Pennsylvania
For Drought beginning on 11/19/2024
New Jersey contiguous counties: Gloucester
Loan application deadline: 07/25/2025
Secretarial Designation S5872 – New Jersey
For Excessive Rain and High Winds beginning on 07/16/2024
New Jersey Primary Counties: Sussex
New Jersey contiguous counties: Morris, Passaic, Warren
Loan application deadline: 07/15/2025
Secretarial Designation S5871 – New Jersey
For Excessive Heat beginning on 06/01/2024
New Jersey Primary Counties: Morris, Sussex, Warren
New Jersey contiguous counties: Essex, Hunterdon, Passaic, Somerset, Union
Loan application deadline: 07/15/2025
Administrator’s Designation N1779 – New Jersey
For Excessive Rain and High Winds beginning on 07/16/2024
New Jersey Primary Counties: Hunterdon, Somerset
New Jersey contiguous counties: Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Union, Warren
Loan application deadline: 05/27/2025
Secretarial Designation S5785 – Delaware
For Drought and Excessive Heat beginning on 06/01/2024
New Jersey contiguous counties: Cumberland, Gloucester, Salem
Loan application deadline: 05/27/2025
Emergency loans help you recover from production and physical losses due to drought, flooding and other natural disasters or quarantine.
You have eight months from the date of the declaration to apply for emergency loan assistance. FSA will consider each loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability. You can borrow up to 100 percent of actual production or physical losses, to a maximum amount of $500,000.
For more information about emergency loans, contact your local USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov.
FSA Offers Disaster Assistance for Qualifying Tree, Bush and Vine Losses
If you’re an orchardist or nursery tree grower whose experienced losses from natural disasters during calendar year 2024, you must submit a TAP application either 90 calendar days after the disaster event or the date when the loss is apparent.
TAP provides financial assistance to help you replant or rehabilitate eligible trees, bushes and vines damaged by natural disasters.
Eligible tree types include trees, bushes or vines that produce an annual crop for commercial purposes. Nursery trees include ornamental, fruit, nut and Christmas trees that are produced for commercial sale. Trees used for pulp or timber are ineligible.
To qualify for TAP, orchardists must suffer a qualifying tree, bush or vine loss in excess of 15 percent mortality from an eligible natural disaster, plus an adjustment for normal mortality. The eligible trees, bushes or vines must have been owned when the natural disaster occurred; however, eligible growers are not required to own the land on which the eligible trees, bushes and vines were planted.
If the TAP application is approved, the eligible trees, bushes and vines must be replaced within 12 months from the date the application is approved. The cumulative total quantity of acres planted to trees, bushes or vines, for which you can receive TAP payments, cannot exceed 1,000 acres annually.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).
