USDA to resume ARC/PLC payments

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on Oct. 22 that it will resume Farm Service Agency (FSA) core operations this Thursday and begin distributing commodity program payments that have been delayed during the ongoing partial government shutdown.

In a statement Tuesday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins confirmed that the Department will move forward with releasing Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) payments owed to producers for the 2024 crop year. These payments, typically issued each October for the prior crop year, had been postponed due to the lapse in federal funding and the temporary closure of FSA county offices.

According to the University of Missouri’s Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI), this year’s distributions include approximately $1.9 billion in ARC payments and $589 million in PLC payments nationwide. ARC payments are triggered when county revenue falls below the five-year average, while PLC payments are issued when the average market price for a covered commodity drops below its reference price.

Rollins stated that FSA operations will resume Thursday, including critical services such as farm loan processing, ARC/PLC payments, and other farm safety net programs. However, USDA employees providing these services will temporarily work without pay until Congress funds the government. A White House memo obtained by multiple news outlets notes that two employees per county FSA office will be called back to staff offices five days per week, focusing on programs funded through USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC). These include disaster assistance, marketing assistance loans, indemnity payments, dairy margin coverage, and related safety net programs.

FSA offices will also accept information and applications for non-CCC-funded programs, such as direct and guaranteed farm loans, conservation, and forest restoration projects, even though processing for those programs may remain limited until normal operations resume.

The Department’s decision follows growing concern from producers regarding the unavailability of FSA services during harvest season, particularly around loan disbursements, grant payments, and access to market data. USDA officials emphasized that this action will “release billions in assistance” to farmers and help mitigate financial stress caused by the prolonged shutdown.

The National Association of Wheat Growers welcomes this development as an important step toward restoring producer access to key farm programs and ensuring timely support to growers during a critical period. We will continue to engage with USDA leadership and congressional offices to encourage full funding and operational stability for the Department as implementation proceeds.

Members are encouraged to contact their local FSA offices for updates on staffing and program availability as services begin to come back online.