Enrollment deadlines near for FSA assistance for livestock and cotton

Livestock producers who have not enrolled for disaster assistance, but have experienced grazing losses due to drought or fire since October 2011, are encouraged to act to secure assistance by Sept. 30, 2014, as congressionally mandated payment reductions will take place for producers who have not acted before that date.

U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) will implement reductions of 7.3 percent to the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) in the new fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, 2014. Register, request an appointment or begin a LFP application with the county FSA office before Oct. 1, 2014 to lock in the current zero-percent sequestration rate. Place your name on the LFP registration list online at http://www.fsa.usda.gov/disaster-register.

Cotton farmers can enroll in the Cotton Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) through Oct. 7, 2014. CTAP applications are subjected to congressionally mandated automatic reductions of 7.2 percent for the 2014 crop year.

The program, administrated by FSA, provides interim payments to cotton farmers during the 2014 crop year until the Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX), a new insurance product, is available. For more information on CTAP, visit a local FSA office or go online to www.fsa.usda.gov.