YourVoice.Now Summary
Corporate BenefitsFarmers hit by drought, fire, floods, or freezes could get yearly federal aid — if they then buy crop insurance
Corporate Benefits
The Agriculture Department would pay farmers who lose crops, trees, bushes, or vines to a named disaster. The program would run every year, with funding allowed from 2025 through 2030.
Farmers who earn under 75% of their income from farming could get up to $125,000 for high-value crops plus $125,000 for other crops. Those at 75% or more could get up to $900,000 plus $250,000.
Farmers with no crop insurance would be paid based on how their sales fell from a normal year. Their total aid could cover up to 70% of the loss, versus 90% for insured farmers.
Losses in crop quality from wildfire smoke would count, and the bill names wine grapes. Crops a disaster kept you from planting would also count.
If a grower uses at least 75% of their grapes to make wine at their own winery, aid would be based on the going price for wine grapes. Their own sales would not be used.
Anyone who takes a payment must buy federal crop insurance for the next two crop years. If no policy is sold for that crop, they must sign up for the government's backup plan for crops with no insurance.
More about this bill
If you farm and a disaster ruins your crops, you could get federal aid every crop year. The Agriculture Department would set up a standing relief program for crop losses. It would cover drought, wildfire, hurricanes, floods, heat, too much rain, winter storms, and freezes. Crops you could not plant would count. So would crops that lost quality, including grapes tainted by wildfire smoke. Aid would be figured from your crop insurance records if you have them. Your total help, counting insurance, could reach 90% of your loss. Farmers with no insurance could get up to 70%, based on their sales. Most farmers could get up to $250,000 a year. Those who earn at least 75% of their income from farming could get up to $1.15 million. If you take the aid, you must buy crop insurance for the next two years. Joint ventures and general partnerships could not apply. Congress could spend as much as needed each year from 2025 through 2030.
Congressional Summary
Agricultural Emergency Relief Act of 2025 This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish an Emergency Relief Program to provide payments each crop year to producers that experience a qualified loss as a result of a disaster that occurred during the crop year. As background, USDA provided payments under a temporary Emergency Relief Program for losses that occurred following disasters in 2020, 2021, or 2022. The bill defines a qualified loss as a loss incurred by a producer in a crop, trees, bushes, or vines as a consequence of a disaster (i.e., a drought, wildfire, hurricane, flood, derecho, excessive heat, excessive moisture, a winter storm, and a freeze event, including a polar vortex). Further, a qualified loss includes a loss incurred as a result of being prevented from planting a crop due to a disaster and a loss in the quality of a crop, trees, bushes, or vines due to a disaster or smoke exposure from a wildfire. As a condition of receiving a payment under this program, a producer must purchase (for the next two years) Federal Crop Insurance or, if Federal Crop Insurance is not available, coverage under the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program. An eligible producer under the program is an individual or entity that is eligible to receive assistance under a Farm Service Agency-administered disaster assistance program. The bill specifies that a producer does not include a joint venture or a general partnership.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- House
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in House
- Action Date
- 2025-07-10
- Date Added
- 2026-10-03
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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