Emergency Assistance For Livestock, Honeybees, And Farm-raised Fish Program

 

The objective of ELAP is to provide emergency assistance to eligible producers of livestock, honeybees, and farm-raised fish who have losses due to disease, adverse weather, or other conditions, including losses due to blizzards and wildfires, as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary). Assistance is provided from the Trust Fund established under Public Law 110-246. ELAP assistance is for losses not covered under other Supplemental Agricultural Disaster Assistance Payment programs specifically Livestock Forage Program (LFP), Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP), and the Supplemental Assistance Program (SURE). ELAP is authorized for fiscal years 2008 through September 30, 2011. The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 extended authority for ELAP under the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 Farm Bill) for the 2012 and 2013 fiscal years. However, for 2012 and 2013 fiscal years funding has not been appropriated for ELAP.

Deleted 02/05/2016 (Archived.) 10.091 Agency: Department of Agriculture
Office: Farm Service Agency Direct Payments for Specified Use Not Applicable. The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, Public Law 112-240, 7 U.S.C 702; The Trade Act of 1974, Public Law 19-2497, 19 U.S.C 2010. To be considered an eligible applicant, the participant must be a producer or contract grower of livestock, honeybee, or farm-raised fish that assumes the production and market risks associated with the agricultural production of crops or livestock on a farm and that meet the requirements to receive ELAP payments. Eligible producers of livestock, honeybees, and farm-raised fish will receive the ultimate benefits from ELAP. An eligible producer of livestock must have owned, cash-leased, purchased, entered into a contract to purchase, or been a contract grower of eligible livestock during the 60 days prior to the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition. To be considered an eligible honeybee producer, a participant must have an interest and risk in the eligible honeybee colony, for the purpose of producing honey or pollination for commercial use as part of a farming operation. To be considered an eligible farm-raised fish producer the participant must have produced eligible farm-raised fish, with the intent to harvest for commercial use as part of a farming operation. Risk Management Purchase Requirement (RMPR). For every commodity on every farm in which the producer has an interest for the relevant program year, the producer must obtain catastrophic coverage (CAT) or better under a policy or plan of insurance administered under the Federal Crop Insurance Act (FCIA). In the case of non-insurable commodity, the producer must obtain the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) coverage by filing the required paperwork and paying the administrative fee by the applicable state application closing date, except this requirement will not include forage on grazing land. Due to the lateness of P.L. 110-246, producers were allowed to "buy-in" to the ELAP for 2008 by paying fees equivalent to the NAP service fee or CAT fee by September 16,2008. If a producer who is otherwise ineligible because of the purchase requirement and did not meet the buy-in deadline of September 16, 2008, still may be eligible for ELAP if the producer paid the applicable fee no later than May 18, 2009.
For 2009, the RMPR was waived for insurable crops where sales closing dates for crop insurance coverage occurred before August 14, 2008, if the buy-in fee was paid by January 12, 2009. This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-87. Producers are required to obtain CAT or NAP coverage prior to applying for ELAP benefits. Environmental impact information is not required for this program. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372. This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-102. This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-110. To apply for ELAP, the participant that suffered eligible livestock, honeybee, or farm-raised fish losses must submit to the FSA administrative county office that maintains the participant's farm records the following: 1. A Notice of Loss for calendar years 2008 and 2009 must be provided no later than May 5, 2010 and for subsequent year losses, the producer must provide a notice of loss to FSA the earlier of 30 calendar days of when the loss is apparent to the producer or 30 calendar days after the end of the calendar year in which the loss occurred.
2. A complete application for payment no later than May 5, 2010 for calendar years 2008 and 2009 and for subsequent crop years, January 30, after the year in which the loss occurred. Livestock payment calculations will be based on losses for no more than 90 days during the calendar year. ELAP payments for feed losses will be based on 60 percent of the producers actual cost for livestock feed, that was purchased or mechanically harvested for forage or feedstuffs; the additional cost incurred for providing or transporting livestock feed or to purchase additional livestock feed above normal to maintain the eligible livestock due to an eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition. Grazing losses will be calculated based on 60 percent of the lesser of the total value of the feed cost for all covered livestock based on the number of days grazing was lost, not to exceed 90 days of daily feed cost for all covered livestock or the total value of grazing lost for all eligible livestock based on the normal carrying capacity of the eligible grazing land. Livestock death losses will be calculated by multiplying the national payment rate for each livestock category times the number of eligible livestock that died in each category as a result of an eligible loss condition in excess of normal mortality. ELAP payments for honeybee losses will be based on 60 percent of the actual cost of honeybee feed that was damaged or destroyed and intended as feed for an eligible honeybee colony. Payments for honeybee colony losses will be based on 60 percent of the average fair market value of the honey bee colonies in the year in which the loss occurred times the number of honey bee colonies that were damaged or destroyed. Payments for honeybee hive losses will be based on 60 percent of the average fair market value of the honey bee hives in the year in which the loss occurred, times the number of honey bee hives that were damaged or destroyed due to an eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition. ELAP payments for eligible farm-raised fish feed losses are based on 60 percent of the actual cost of purchased or harvested feed that was intended as feed for eligible farm-raised fish and was damaged because of an eligible adverse weather or loss condition in the calendar year in which the loss occurred Payments for farm-raised fish death losses will be based on 60 percent of the State's average fair market value of the bait or game fish times the number of bait or game fish lost due to an eligible adverse weather or loss condition. Contact the headquarters or regional office, as appropriate, for application deadlines. Not Applicable. Appeal regulations set forth at parts 11 and 780 of 7CFR. Not Applicable. Not Applicable. ELAP covers losses occurring on or after January 1, 2008 and before October 1, 2011. Public Law 110-246, Sections 12033 and 15101, authorized the Secretary to provide payments to producers of livestock, honeybees, and farm-raised fish to aid in the reduction of losses due to disease, adverse weather, or other conditions such as blizzards and wildfires. ELAP also covers some species, loss conditions, and losses that are not eligible for other disaster assistance programs, including colony collapse disorder and wildfires on non-Federal land.The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 extended authority for ELAP under the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 Farm Bill) for the 2012 and 2013 fiscal years. However, for 2012 and 2013 fiscal years funding has not been appropriated for ELAP. Assistance will be granted only to eligible livestock, honeybee, and farm-raised producers. ELAP benefits, compensation, or relief will be strictly used to compensate eligible losses. For program year 2008, no person may receive more than $100,000 total in payments under ELAP, LFP, LIP, SURE, combined. For 2009 and subsequent program years, no person or legal entity may receive directly or indirectly, more than $100,000 total in payments under ELAP, LFP, LIP, and SURE combined. Not Applicable. Not Applicable. The producer or any other legal entity or person who provides information enabling a producer to receive payments must maintain any books, records and accounts supporting the information for three years following the end of the year during which the request for payment was submitted and allow authorized representatives of USDA and the U.S. Government Accountability Office during regular business hours, to inspect, examine, and make copies of such books or records, and to enter the farm and to inspect and verify all applicable acreage in which the producer has an interest for the purpose of confirming the accuracy of information provided by or for the producer. Statutory formulas are not applicable to this program.
Matching requirements are not applicable to this program.
MOE requirements are not applicable to this program. There are no restrictions place on the time permitted to spend the money awarded. Method of awarding/releasing assistance: lump sum. See Regional Agency Offices. Amy Mitchell USDA, FSA, Production, Emergencies, & Compliance Division, 1400 Independence Ave SW Stop 0517, Washington, District of Columbia 20250 Email: Amy.Mitchell1@wdc.usda.gov Phone: (202) 720-8954 Fax: (202) 690-2130 http://www.fsa.gov 12-5531-0-2-351. (Direct Payments for Specified Use) FY 12 $9,542,046; FY 13 est $0; and FY 14 est $0 - Funding for ELAP was only authorized for losses incurred as the result of a disaster, adverse weather, or other environmental conditions that occurred on or before September 30, 2011. The Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 extended ELAP for fiscal years 2012 and 2013; however, no funding has been appropriated. No Data Available. 7CFR Part 760
Federal Register Vol 74, No. 175, dated September 11, 2009 Not Applicable.