Search Site   
Current News Stories
Flower strips studied to control pests in apple orchards
Northwest Ohio elementary teachers learn how to bring Ag to the Classroom
Second case of Theileria found in a southeast Iowa cattle herd
Indiana FFA elects 2025-2026 state officer team
Michigan farmer to become first vice president of NCGA
Milk output is up from a year ago for the fifth straight month
East Tennessee struggles to recover from Hurricane Helene
International Harvester introduced first lawn and garden tractor
Bull nettles may be difficult to gather; but make excellent greens
Corn, soybean exports up over last year
Ohio FFA names new state president and officer team
   
News Articles
Search News  
   
USDA announces short-term fiscal relief for cotton acres
 


MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Cotton producers will be finding some short-term assistance in the form of a Cotton Ginning Cost Share (CGCS) program. The USDA initiative is aimed at expanding cotton growth and maintaining the domestic marketing of cotton.

The program was recently announced at the 66th Annual Mid-South Farm and Gin Show in Memphis. “America’s cotton producers have now faced four years of financial stress, just like the rest of our major commodities, but with a weaker safety net,” said USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue.

“In particular, cotton producers confront high input and infrastructure costs, which leaves them more financially leveraged than most of their colleagues. That economic burden has been felt by the entire cotton market, including the gins, cooperatives, marketers, cottonseed crushers and the rural communities that depend upon their success.”

The CGCS initiative will be administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA), and under the program, cotton producers may receive a cost share payment, which is based on a producer’s 2016 cotton acres. Regional per-acre payment rates are set at 20 percent of USDA’s regional costs of ginning and are as follows:

•Southeast (Ala., Fla., Ga., N.C., S.C., Va.) – $23.21

•Mid-South (Ark., Ill., Ky., La., Mo., Miss., Tenn.) – $30.39

•Southwest (Kan., Okla., Texas) – $19.65

•West (Ariz., Calif., N.M.) – $48.02

Cost share payments are capped at $40,000 per individual or entity. These payments do not count against the 2014 farm bill payment limitations.

National Cotton Council Chair Ron Craft applauded the measure. “Our industry is also very thankful for the strong commitment and support by numerous members of Congress, who have led letters and other efforts to build support within the administration for this assistance. In addition, the support provided by the agricultural lending community and agribusinesses across the Cotton Belt was an integral part of these successful efforts."

To be eligible for a cost share payment, each applicant is required to be a person or legal entity actively engaged in farming in 2016 and who complies with requirements including, but not limited to, those pertaining to highly erodible land conservation and wetland conservation provisions, commonly referred to as the conservation compliance provisions.

A producer’s three-year average adjusted gross income may not exceed $900,000 to be eligible for the cost share payments.

The CGCS program supplements Congress’ passage earlier this month of a supplemental disaster bill that includes policy that establishes seed cotton’s eligibility in the Title I ARC/PLC programs of the farm bill. The signup period for the CGCS program runs to May 11.

3/14/2018