On Tuesday, November 15, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced plans for additional assistance for agriculture producers through the Emergency Relief Program (ERP) Phase Two and the Pandemic Assistance Revenue Program (PARP).

ERP Phase Two will be eligible for producers who suffered a loss in allowable gross revenue due to necessary expenses related to losses of eligible crops from a natural disaster event, including, but not limited to wildfires, droughts, and winter storms. Eligible crops include traditional insurable commodities and specialty crops produced in the U.S. as part of a farming operation and intended to be commercially marketed.

To be eligible for PARP, producers must have been in business during at least part of the 2020 calendar year. They must have also experienced a certain threshold decrease in allowable gross revenue for the 2020 calendar year, as compared to 2018 or 2019.

Both programs will use revenue information from most tax records. Producers who may be eligible are encouraged to begin gathering documentation including Form 1040 and Profit or Loss from Farming documents for the last five tax years for ERP, and calendar years 2018, 2019, and 2020 for PARP.

The USDA will provide additional information on how to apply for assistance through both programs in the coming weeks.