<b>By JANE HOUIN<br>
Ohio Correspondent</b> </p><p>

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Eligible dairy producers are now able to sign up for the Dairy Disaster Assistance Program (DDAP-III) at local USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) Service Centers.</p><p>
DDAP-III will help dairy producers recover production losses resulting from a variety of adverse weather conditions in the last few years.</p><p>
The program provides $16 million in benefits to dairy producers for production losses that occurred between Jan. 1, 2005, and Feb. 28, 2007, because of qualifying natural disasters. </p><p>
It compensates producers for production losses that resulted from lost herds or dumped milk when dairy plants closed or the natural disaster damaged containment equipment.</p><p>
Additionally, power outages, fuel shortages and infrastructure damage may have temporarily interrupted the flow of dairy products to markets.</p><p>
To be eligible for DDAP-III, dairy producers must have suffered losses in primary and contiguous counties declared or designated a natural disaster. Also, producers in counties receiving an FSA Administrator’s Physical Loss Notice determination are eligible.</p><p>
Under proposed DDAP-III regulations, to receive benefits, producers must have produced and marketed milk anytime between Jan. 1, 2005, and Feb. 28, 2007; suffered dairy production losses attributed to the declared natural disaster during the eligible period in an approved area; and provide proof of monthly milk production commercially marketed by all persons in the eligible dairy operation during the applicable milk marketing calendar year and claim period (Jan. 2, 2005 - Feb. 27, 2007).</p><p>
Producers must also have been in compliance with the Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation provisions for the calendar year that applies to the natural disaster declaration and loss claim period.</p><p>
Proposed rules for DDAP-III require producers to provide satisfactory production evidence for the claim period to enable FSA to determine commercial marketing and production history of the dairy operation. This information will be used to compute losses as well as calculate benefits.</p><p>
Among the records producers must provide are herd inventory records as well as proof that losses occurred in an eligible county. FSA may require producers to provide additional documentation to verify production losses.</p><p>
Producers must also provide a history of commercial production marketing, including production marketed during the claim period.
Proof of the operation’s production history must be based on milk marketing statements obtained from the operations milk handler or marketing cooperative. </p><p>
Such supporting documentation may include tank records, milk handler records, daily milk marketings, copies of payments received from other sources for production losses or any other documents available to confirm or adjust the production history losses.</p><p>
Any spoiled or dumped milk must be counted as production during the claim period, and FSA may adjust production losses during the disaster period if the agency determines the disaster did not cause the losses.</p><p>
Payments will be calculated by multiplying the producer’s total production losses in whole pounds of milk by the payment rate (the stat’s annual average mailbox milk price for the marketing order as reported by USDA’s Marketing Service ).</p><p>
FSA will calculate a producer’s total dairy production losses using the base year production minus the commercially marketed production during the disaster period. The base year rate will be calculated based on the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service figured on average production per cow in the state multiplied by the number of cows in a producer’s operation.</p><p>
While producers may have a claim for more than one year, FSA will reduce benefits by the amount paid under DDAP-II or other disaster programs.</p><p>
To find out more information about the DDAP- III visit the www.fsa.usda.gov website or to apply for the program, contact your local FSA Service Center.