In This Issue:

• NBGA Weighs-In with Congress on Farm Bill, Rail, Research, and Crop Protection Policy
• NBGA Joins Ag Groups Calling for Action to Avert Rail Strike
• NBGA Reiterates Support for Ag Research Funding
• Action Urged to Address State Overreach on Pesticide Regulations
• Sign-Up for ARC and PLC Open Through March 2023

NBGA Weighs-In with Congress on Farm Bill, Rail, Research, and Crop Protection Policy

NBGA joined over 40 other agricultural groups and Farm Bill stakeholders in a letter to Congress calling for a strong farm bill, highlighting the critical need for sufficient budget resources, outlining farmer challenges and high-level farmer needs in the next comprehensive farm bill.

The letter can be viewed here. 

NBGA Joins Ag Groups Calling for Action to Avert Rail Strike

NBGA also joined with 193 agricultural value chain groups and industry partners urging Congressional Leadership to be prepared to act quickly when arriving back in session on November 14 to prevent a potential rail service shutdown on November 19. The potential for a crippling strike has increased after two unions voted not to ratify an agreement brokered by the Administration between the National Railway Labor Conference (NRLC) and twelve unions.

That letter is available here.

NBGA Reiterates Support for Ag Research Funding

In support of research funding for Fiscal Year 2023, NBGA and over 50 organizations led by the National Coalition for Food and Agricultural Research (NCFAR) urged Congress to come to an agreement on FY23 funding as soon as possible and to support USDA research programs in the final FY23 bill. NBGA priorities include research funding for the Wheat & Barley Scab Initiative and the Barley Pest Initiative. 

Action Urged to Address State Overreach on Pesticide Regulations

Following recent examples of states ignoring long-standing policy regarding the regulation and labeling of pesticide products, NBGA and agricultural groups are urging Congress to assert federal jurisdiction and preempt over-reaching state actions that contradict scientific guidance from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Lack of certainty on EPA-approved, science-based nationwide labels will erode access to current and future pesticides, threatening crops and grower incomes. Over 200 groups signed a letter urging Congress to reaffirm that EPA is the primary, federal authority for making pesticide findings and decisions, and that states may build upon the agency’s findings should they choose.

The letter can be viewed here.

Sign-Up for ARC and PLC Open Through March 2023

Agricultural producers can now change election and enroll in the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage programs for the 2023 crop year, two key safety net programs offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Signup is underway, and producers have until March 15, 2023, to enroll in these two programs. Additionally, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) has started issuing payments totaling more than $255 million to producers with 2021 crops that have triggered payments through ARC or PLC.  

2023 Elections and Enrollment 

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 2023 are optional, producers must enroll through a signed contract each year. Also, if a producer has a multi-year contract on the farm and makes an election change for 2023, they must sign a new contract. 

If producers do not submit their election by the March 15, 2023 deadline, their election remains the same as their 2022 election for crops on the farm. Farm owners cannot enroll in either program unless they have a share interest in the farm. 

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 and short grain rice, safflower seed, seed cotton, sesame, soybeans, sunflower seed and wheat. 

Web-Based Decision Tools 

In partnership with USDA, the University of Illinois and Texas A&M University offer web-based decision tools to assist producers in making informed, educated decisions using crop data specific to their respective farming operations.

Tools include: 

Gardner-farmdoc Payment Calculator, available through the University of Illinois allows producers to estimate payments for farms and counties for ARC-CO and PLC. 

ARC and PLC Decision Tool, available through Texas A&M that allows producers to obtain basic information regarding the decision and factors that should be taken into consideration such as future commodity prices and historic yields to estimate payments for 2022. 

2021 Payments and Contracts 

ARC and PLC payments for a given crop year are paid out the following fall to allow actual county yields and the Market Year Average prices to be finalized. This month, FSA processed payments to producers enrolled in 2021 ARC-CO, ARC-IC and PLC for covered commodities that triggered for the crop year. 

For ARC-CO, producers can view the 2021 ARC-CO Benchmark Yields and Revenues online database, for payment rates applicable to their county and each covered commodity. For PLC, payments have triggered for rapeseed and peanuts. 

For ARC-IC, producers should contact their local FSA office for additional information pertaining to 2021 payment information, which relies on producer-specific yields for the crop and farm to determine benchmark yields and actual year yields when calculating revenues. 

More Information 

For more information on ARC and PLC, visit the ARC and PLC webpage 

or contact your local USDA Service Center.