GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Florida invites farmers, ranchers and forest landowners who were impacted by recent hurricanes to participate in a webinar focused on available FSA disaster recovery resources.
“The Farm Service Agency is here to help Florida agriculture recover from damages caused by hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton,” said Deborah Tannenbaum, FSA State Executive Director in Florida. “USDA offers a suite of programs to help, and we’re also offering program flexibilities to streamline and expedite the recovery process.”
The webinar is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, from 10:30 a.m. to noon Eastern. Participants can join the meeting using this link or can dial in at +1 (202) 650-0123, entering the phone conference identification number: 455 162 563#.
Those with disabilities who require accommodations to participate in this meeting should contact Savanna Danver at (352) 338-3434 or dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunication relay services.
FSA Disaster Assistance to be Discussed
FSA has added flexibilities to several programs due to hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton. Brief descriptions of a few of the programs that will be discussed during the webinar are provided below. A full list of available programs and flexibilities can be found at farmers.gov/hurricane.
To help expedite farmland and private forestland rehabilitation assistance through the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) and Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP), FSA has taken the following measures:
- Extended the ECP signup deadline to June 1, 2025, in states affected by hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton.
- Executed Emergency Response (ER-850) authorization of emergency National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) circumstances to expedite FSA approval of practices involving surface debris removal, fence restoration and non-ground disturbing activities.
- Waiver of onsite inspection requirement for non-engineering practices for ECP and EFRP.
- Waiver of requirement for producers to obtain prior approval to conduct surface debris removal, fence repair and hazard tree removal to support critical disaster recovery efforts. Producers should contact FSA for any questions on allowable activities.