Farmers Have Until March 31, 2015 To Update Yields and Reallocate Base Acres

Reallocation Deadline Extended

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently announced that a one-time extension will be provided to producers for the new safety-net programs established by the 2014 Farm Bill, known as Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC). The final day to update yield history or reallocate base acres has been extended one additional month, from Feb. 27 until March 31, 2015. The final day for farm owners and producers to choose ARC or PLC coverage also remains March 3.

If no changes are made to yield history or base acres by March 31, the farm’s current yield and base will be used. A program choice of ARC or PLC coverage also must be made by March 31, or there will be no 2014 payments for the farm and the farm will default to PLC coverage through the 2018 crop year.

Farmers now have until March 31 to update yields and reallocate base acres; deadline for choosing between ARC and PLC also remains March 31

Nationwide, more than 2.9 million educational postcards, in English and Spanish, have been sent to producers, and over 4,100 training sessions have been conducted on the new safety-net programs. The online tools, available at the USDA Website,allow producers to explore projections on how ARC or PLC coverage will affect their operation under possible future scenarios.

Covered commodities include peanuts, barley, canola, large and small chickpeas, corn, crambe, flaxseed, grain sorghum, lentils, mustard seed, oats, dry peas, rapeseed, long grain rice, medium grain rice (which includes short grain rice), safflower seed, sesame, soybeans, sunflower seed and wheat. Upland cotton is no longer a covered commodity.

To learn more, farmers can contact their local Farm Service Agency county office.