Disaster assistance through the USDA is now pouring into South Dakota following the enactment of the latest Farm Bill.
In the last 10 weeks the USDA has paid out $96-million dollars to farmers and ranchers following the 2012 drought and 2013 October blizzard.
Craig Schaunaman is the Executive Director of the Farm Service Agency in South Dakota. He says the large numbers aren’t a surprise, given the extent of both the drought and blizzard. He says more federal assistance is on the way.
“We knew early on that we could easily exceed $100-milion in the livestock disaster programs. We’re going to exceed that by quite a ways. We think we’re 40% though the producers obviously we’ve got more producers to come in but we don’t know how large they are or the number of losses that are out there but when we push up over the $100-million it’s no surprise to us,” says Schaunaman.
Private donations through the rancher relief fund topped $6–million after the October Blizzard.
Schaunaman says some farmers and ranchers are still recuperating from both the 2012 and 2013 disasters. He says the federal government plays an important role in supporting and sustaining South Dakota’s number one industry.
Schaunaman says these funds won’t restore all the losses but he says they will help keep ag producers in business and restore local economies. This summer’s floods and tornadoes may result in more federal money coming to South Dakota through FEMA and the USDA.