TRADE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FOR FARMERS NOW UNDERWAY
News Date March 02, 2010
This week, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack commenced USDA’s Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for Farmers Program. The TAA for Farmers Program, which was reauthorized and modified by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), provides assistance to eligible agriculture groups that have been significantly impaired by import competition. Assistance includes aid in the development of business adjustment plans to provide for a guide to dealing with prevailing economic conditions.
Administered by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), the TAA for Farmers Program is available for producers of raw agricultural commodities, as well as fishermen, who can demonstrate - due to a sizeable increase in imports - a greater than 15 percent decrease in their national average price; the quantity of production; the value of production; or in cash receipts, when compared to the average of the three preceding marketing years. Prospective participants are encouraged to expeditiously prepare their petitions as the deadline is April 14, 2010.
For more information on the TAA for Farmers Program, including background on the program, the interim rule, and further details for prospective participants, visit the FAS website, or contact the TAA for Farmers Program staff, Office of Trade Programs, at (202) 720-0638, or (202) 690-0633, or by e-mail at tradeadjustment@fas.usda.gov. (Contact: David Hickey)