Farm programs extended, deadlines set

When Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, it extended some of the farm programs from the 2008 Farm Bill. Farmers and ranchers will soon be able to sign up for programs at the Adams County Farm Service Agency office.

The extended programs include: the Direct and Counter-Cyclical Payment Program (DCP), the Average Crop Revenue Election Program (ACRE), and the Milk Income Loss Contract Program (MILC).

FSA will begin sign-ups for DCP and ACRE for the 2013 crops on Feb. 19. The DCP sign-up period will end on Aug. 2; the ACRE sign-up period will end on June 3.

The 2013 DCP and ACRE program provisions are unchanged from last year, except that all eligible participants in 2013 may choose to enroll in either DCP or ACRE for the 2013 crop year.

All dairy producers’ MILC contracts are automatically extended to Sept. 30, 2013. Eligible producers therefore do not need to re-enroll in MILC.

“The MILC contracts will have modifications, which the agency will announce soon,” said Chris Holt, County Executive Director.

Producers are encouraged to contact the local Farm Service Agency office or check the FSA website http://www.fsa.usda.gov for additional information.