FSA Offices Offer Limited Services During Shutdown

USDA recently announced that Farm Service Agency offices will open again despite the ongoing stalemate in funding the federal government.

"Secretary Rollins announced on Fox that Thursday, October 23, all 2,100 county Farm Service Agency offices are opening," said Brian Glenn, director of government affairs for the American Farm Bureau Federation.  "USDA will call back two employees to staff each county Farm Service Agency office five days a week.”

Glenn said the offices are reopening to provide vital services to farmers and ranchers.

“The county Farm Service Agency offices will carry out programs such as disaster aid, marketing assistance loans, indemnity programs, dairy margin coverage and more farm safety net programs like ARC and PLC payments to ensure farmers and ranchers receive the payments and commitments so they can continue to plan for their next season," he said.

No End To The Shutdown In Sight

Glenn added this may be standard operating procedure for some time as the government shutdown continues.

“Unfortunately, a resolution to this shutdown is not really in sight, and congressional Republicans and Democrats are still at a stalemate," Glenn noted.  "So, the Senate has voted several times on this house-passed funding bill, and it has failed every time, but there are triggers coming up that will put additional pressure on Congress to get something done.”

One of the key upcoming pressure points on Congress, Glenn pointed out,  is supplemental nutrition program funding, which runs out of money on Saturday November 1st.

If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsquaremedia.com