Farmers Get Payments from Four Government Programs

Farmers who don't plant a crop this spring because of historic flooding in the Midwest could still potentially receive four separate payments on that acreage due to actions by the Trump administration and Congress.

Catherine Boudreau, with Pro Ag, says, crop insurance payouts, disaster aid and two opportunities to earn income from cover crops, including from the trade mitigation package, are all on the table.

Farmers facing significant delays in getting a crop in the ground because of the weather may opt to collect what are known as prevented planting insurance payments. These producers also qualify for the $19 billion disaster aid package recently signed by President Donald Trump, after a major push by lawmakers.

Farmers who file insurance claims for prevented planting can still plant cover crops, which include legumes, alfalfa and cereal grains, often for conservation purposes. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said USDA is considering whether it can make "minimum" payments to farmers for those cover crops under the $16 billion trade mitigation package.