The American Farm Bureau is calling on Secretary Tom Vilsack to extend the CFAP 3 deadline.
The deadline is Friday, but the program has been suspended since President Biden took office. The Bureau sent a letter to Vilsack today saying the regulatory freeze has caused a lot of confusion for farmers and ranchers, and with all the severe weather last week, many were not able to complete the application process.
Farm Bureau also supports an effort to update the borrowing limit for USDA.
A Georgia Republican introduced a bill to more than double the amount of money in the Commodity Credit Corporation.
Farm Bureau’s Andrew Walmsley says that CCC funding has not be increased since 1987, and this is an appropriate amount considering inflation. He said that CCC is a critical funding tool for ag.
“At the end of the day, farmers and ranchers want to find markets but when your business partner is Mother Nature and you’re dealing in a global economy, having some risk management tools at the disposal of USDA probably isn’t a bad idea to ensure we continue to have the most affordable and safe food supply on the planet,” Walmsley explains.
He goes on to say that with the potential for CCC to be used for climate-smart ag, it is important for the bank to have enough money to cover all ag needs.