Sen. John Kennedy (R-La), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today reintroduced the Quality Loss Adjustment Improvement for Farmers Act. The bill would give farmers more flexibility by improving the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC)’s ability to set discounts for farmers who experience crop loss.
“Too often, federal insurers give American farmers short shrift when regional disasters damage their crops. The Quality Loss Adjustment Improvement for Farmers Act would make sure that fickle government policies don’t control the fate of Louisiana farms,” said Kennedy.
The Quality Loss Adjustment Improvement for Farmers Act would give the FCIC more latitude to review the methodology it uses to determine discounts for farmers who experience crop loss. It would give stakeholders input into the process of setting those discounts and require a report to be issued following the review.
The bill would also allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) to establish a regional discount consideration that accounts for extreme weather events and natural disasters.
Background:
- The FCIC, which the RMA manages, provides federal crop insurance policies to approved insurance providers to sell coverage to America’s farmers and ranchers.
- The discounts provided to farmers who experience crop loss generally do not reflect the real damages farmers incur. This often leaves farmers without the flexibility they need to keep their farms afloat in the long run.
- The FCIC does not take regional disasters into account when it calculates discounts.
Rep. Julia Letlow (R-La.) reintroduced the legislation in the House of Representatives.
“Sudden crop losses due to severe weather have a heavy impact on the farmers at the heart of our nation’s food supply. By proposing much-needed flexibility and more specialized support to federal crop insurance programs, I’m fighting to ensure Louisiana farmers have the support they need when disaster strikes,” said Letlow.
Source - https://www.kennedy.senate.gov
