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USDA Offers Disaster Assistance to Agricultural Producers in Texas Impacted by Recent Severe Weather, Tornadoes and Flooding

COLLEGE STATION/TEMPLE, Texas, April 10, 2025 - Agricultural operations in Texas have been considerably impacted by recent extreme weather, tornadoes and flooding. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has technical and monetary support offered to help farmers and livestock manufacturers recuperate from these unfavorable weather condition events. Impacted producers must call their regional USDA Service Center to report losses and find out more about program choices readily available to assist in their recovery from crop, land, infrastructure, and livestock losses and damages.

USDA Disaster Assistance

Producers who experience animals deaths in excess of normal death might be eligible for the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP). To get involved in LIP, manufacturers will need to offer acceptable paperwork of death losses arising from an eligible negative weather condition occasion and need to send a notification of loss and program payment application to the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) no behind March 2, 2026, for 2025 fiscal year losses. Livestock manufacturers who experience losses related to twisters should consult their local FSA workplace for LIP eligibility criteria.

Meanwhile, the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) provides qualified manufacturers with settlement for feed and grazing losses. For ELAP, producers are required to finish a notification of loss and send a payment application to their local FSA workplace no behind the annual program application deadline, March 2, 2026, for 2025 calendar year losses.

Additionally, eligible orchardists and nursery tree growers might be eligible for cost-share assistance through the Tree Assistance Program (TAP) to replant or restore qualified trees, bushes or vines. TAP complements the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) or crop insurance protection, which covers the crop but not the plants or trees in all cases. For TAP, a program application need to be filed within 90 days of the catastrophe event or the date when the loss of the trees, bushes or vines is apparent.

"Impacted producers ought to timely report all crop, animals and farm infrastructure damages and losses to their regional FSA county office as soon as possible," said Erasmo "Eddie" Trevino, Deputy State Executive Director for FSA in Texas. "As you evaluate your operation, require time to collect essential files you will need to get support, consisting of farm records, herd inventory, receipts and images of damages or losses."

FSA likewise offers a range of direct and ensured farm loans, including operating and emergency situation farm loans, to producers not able to secure industrial funding. Producers in counties with a primary or contiguous catastrophe designation might be qualified for low interest emergency situation loans to help them recuperate from production and physical losses. Loans can assist producers replace essential residential or commercial property, purchase inputs like animals, equipment, feed and seed, cover family living expenditures or re-finance farm-related debts and other needs.

Additionally, FSA provides several loan servicing choices available for borrowers who are not able to make scheduled payments on their farm loan programs debt to the company due to the fact that of reasons beyond their control.

The Farm Storage Facility Loan Program (FSFL) offers low-interest funding so producers can construct, repair, replace or upgrade facilities to keep commodities. Loan terms vary from three to 12 years. Producers who sustained damage to or loss of their equipment or infrastructure moneyed by the FSFL program must contact their insurance coverage representative and their local USDA Service Center. Producers in requirement of on-farm storage must also call USDA.

Risk Management

Producers with NAP coverage should report crop damage to their local FSA office and should submit a Notice of Loss (CCC-576) within 15 days of the loss becoming evident, other than for hand-harvested crops, which should be reported within 72 hours.

Producers with danger defense through Federal Crop Insurance ought to report crop damage to their crop insurance representative within 72 hours of discovering damage and make sure to follow up in writing within 15 days.

"Crop insurance and other USDA threat management options are offered to help producers manage threat due to the fact that we never ever understand what nature has in shop for the future," said Jim Bellmon, Director of USDA's Risk Management Agency (RMA) Regional Office that covers Texas. "The Approved Insurance Providers, loss adjusters and agents are skilled and trained in dealing with these types of occasions."

Conservation

FSA's Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) and Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) can assist landowners and forest stewards with financial and technical assistance to restore fencing, harmed farmland or forests, and eliminate debris from feed stocks, water supplies and feeding locations.

USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is constantly readily available to supply technical assistance during the healing procedure by assisting producers to prepare and carry out preservation practices on farms and working forests impacted by natural catastrophes. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) can help producers plan and implement preservation practices on land impacted by natural disasters.

"The Natural Resources Conservation Service can be a very valuable partner to assist landowners with their healing and resiliency efforts," said Kristy Oates, NRCS State Conservationist in Texas. "Our personnel will work individually with landowners to make assessments of the damages and develop approaches that focus on reliable recovery of the land."

Assistance for Communities

Additional NRCS programs include the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program, which helps local federal government sponsors with the cost of resolving watershed disabilities or hazards such as debris elimination and streambank stabilization.

Eligible sponsors include cities, counties, towns or any federally recognized Native American people or tribal company. Sponsors should submit an official request (by mail or e-mail) to the NRCS state conservationist for support within 60 days of the natural disaster occurrence or 60 days from the date when access to the websites end up being offered. For additional information sponsors should please contact their local NRCS office.

Additional USDA catastrophe assistance info can be discovered on farmers.gov, including USDA resources specifically for producers affected by tornadoes. Those resources consist of the Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool, Disaster-at-a-Glance reality sheet and Loan Assistance Tool. Additionally, FarmRaise partnered with FSA to release an online education hub consisted of videos, tools and interactive resources, consisting of farm loan details and LIP and ELAP decision tools. For FSA and NRCS programs, manufacturers ought to call their regional USDA Service Center. For support with a crop insurance coverage claim, manufacturers and landowners ought to contact their crop insurance coverage agent.