2005-2007 Livestock Indemnity/Compensation continues
The USDA/Farm Service Agency’s Livestock Compensation and Livestock Indemnity Program, which was authorized under the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, continues to accept applications for loss compensation due to grazing losses on pastures and loss of livestock due to disaster conditions experienced in the county during the years 2005-2007.
For producers to be eligible for the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP), an owner or contract grower’s livestock must have been located in a county or contiguous county designated a natural disaster by the president or declared by the U.S. secretary of agriculture. Producers who incurred losses in more than one of the 2005-2007 calendar years may only select one year in which to receive assistance. Producers must have legally owned the eligible livestock on the day the livestock died. Eligible livestock include beef and dairy cattle (adults and non-adults), chickens, deer, ducks, geese, equine, goats, sheep (including ewes, rams, and lambs) and swine, and turkeys.
An owner’s livestock must have died as a direct result of an eligible disaster event after January 1, 2005 and before December 31, 2007; and not later than 60 calendar days from the ending date of the applicable disaster period(s). Livestock must have been maintained for a commercial farming operation on the day they died and the livestock must have not been produced for reasons other than commercial farming.
Contract growers of livestock must have a written agreement with the eligible livestock owner setting the specific terms, conditions, and obligations of the parties involved regarding the production of livestock; and control of the livestock on the day the livestock died.
USDA will calculate LIP payments by multiplying the national payment rate for each livestock category by the number of eligible livestock in each category. USDA will base the national payment rate for eligible livestock owners on 26 percent of the average income loss sustained by the contract grower with respect to the dead livestock.
Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) applications will be accepted at the local FSA service centers that maintain farm records for the producer’s business. Information to submit should include copies of the grower contracts, and other supporting documents required for determining eligibility. Applicants must provide adequate proof that the eligible livestock deaths occurred in an eligible county as a direct result of an eligible disaster event during the applicable disaster period. This may be documented by purchase records, veterinarian records, bank or other loan papers, rendering truck receipts, Federal Emergency Management Agency records, written contracts, production records, IRS records, property tax records, private insurance documents, and similar documents.
FSA will accept certifications of livestock deaths by third parties provided the livestock owner or contract grower certifies in writing that there is no other documentation of death available; the number of livestock were in inventory at the time of the disaster; and the third party provides their telephone number, address, and a written statement containing specific details about their knowledge of the livestock deaths; their affiliation with the livestock owner; and the accuracy of the deaths claimed by the livestock owner.
Producers who may have suffered losses to livestock as a direct result of natural disasters should contact the Warren County Farm Service Center located at 811 Faulkner Springs Road during regular business hours to file an application for benefits.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (SDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET center at (202) 720-2600 (voice or TDD). To file a complaint of Discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.