Apply Now for a Second Round of Payments Through USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program

The dairy payment will amount to $1.20/cwt. on a farm’s production during the last nine months of 2020. Dairy payments will be based on actual milk production from April 1 to Aug. 31, 2020. Milk production for Sept. 1, 2020, to Dec. 31, 2020, will be estimated by FSA, using daily average production from the April-August base period of known production.

For dairy beef, producers are eligible for cattle inventory payment on bull calves and dairy steers, but not for breeding stock. The beef payment is $55 per head on eligible cattle in inventory on a date selected by the producer between April and the end of August. Click here for a full list of eligible commodities and payment rates.

100 percent of the payment will be made once a farm’s eligibility is determined.

Dairy operations applying for CFAP 2 must be producing and commercially marketing milk at the time of application. Dairy operations that dissolve or have dissolved on or after Sept. 1, 2020 are eligible for a prorated payment for the number of days the dairy operation commercially markets milk from Sept. 1, 2020, through Dec. 31, 2020. Dairy operations that dissolve before Sept. 1, 2020, are ineligible for CFAP 2 payments.

Producers will also have to certify they meet the Adjusted Gross Income limitation of $900,000 unless at least 75 percent of their income is derived from farming, ranching or forestry-related activities. Producers must also be complying with Highly Erodible Land and Wetland Conservation provisions.

The payment limitation per person or entity, for all commodities combined, is $250,000. Entities structured as corporations, limited liability companies, or limited partnerships may qualify for additional payment limits when members actively provide at least 400 hours of personal labor or personal management for the farming operation.

Due to NMPF’s persistent lobbying of Congress and USDA about payment restrictions affecting farms held in family trusts, this version’s payment limitation provision is expanded to include trusts and estates for both CFAP 1 and 2, meaning those who were disadvantaged by restrictive trust-related payment interpretations in the first round will have their situation resolved for that round, as well as Round 2. The application of direct attribution has also been modified both for CFAP 1 and 2, so that payment limits will not be reduced based on ownership shares. Previously, each owner’s share of the operation was applied to the payment limitation, not to the overall CFAP payment to which the operation is entitled, but Friday’s announcement solves that problem for both rounds of the program.

Producers can apply for assistance beginning Sept. 21, 2020. Applications will be accepted through Dec. 11, 2020.

Additional information and application forms may be found at www.farmers.gov/cfap. Documentation to support the producer’s application and certification may be requested. All other eligibility forms, such as those related to adjusted gross income and payment information, may be downloaded from farmers.gov/cfap/apply. For existing FSA customers, including those who participated in CFAP 1, many documents are likely already on file. Producers should check with their FSA county offices to see if any forms need to be updated.

Customers seeking one-on-one support with the CFAP 2 application process can call 877-508-8364 to speak directly with a USDA employee ready to offer assistance. This is a recommended first step before a producer engages with the team at the FSA county office.