Miss-Lou declared a disaster

By Vershal Hogan (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Monday, November 23, 2009

NATCHEZ — For the second time in a month, part of the Miss-Lou has been declared a disaster.

Adams, Jefferson, Franklin and Wilkinson counties were all included in a 79-county disaster area declaration for Mississippi by the U.S. Department of Agriculture last week.

The declaration is because of losses caused by the flooding that happened this spring and fall, as well as the summer drought.

Farm operations in Concordia and Tensas parishes were included in the declarations because they are contiguous to the Mississippi disaster areas.

The declaration makes it possible for all farmers to be eligible for low-interest emergency loans from the Farm Service Agency.

Following the USDA’s announcement, Friday Sens. Roger Wicker and Thad Cochran introduced legislation that would allow direct assistance to farmers in primary disaster areas — in this case, the Mississippi counties — who lost crops due to the heavy rains.

“The extraordinary amounts of rain poured on the Mississippi Delta have caused significant crop losses throughout the region.  Sweet potatoes, grain sorghum, soybeans and cotton harvests have been compromised to an extent that the financial survival of many producers is uncertain,” Cochran said in a joint news release with Wicker.

“Existing Department of Agriculture disaster aid programs cannot provide the near-term help needed by growers.  The Direct Payment mechanism, which has been used to provide assistance numerous times, is the only way for the Department of Agriculture to provide timely assistance.”

In August, the crop year was looking to be a bumper harvest until the heavy rains delayed harvest until it was too late, costing approximately a half billion dollars statewide, Wicker said in the release.

“These excessive losses have made it nearly impossible for many hardworking Mississippi farmers to pay their bills or to prepare for planting next year,” Wicker said. “The hardship caused by the excessive September and October rains will be felt beyond Mississippi’s agriculture community.  This disaster will have a negative effect on our entire economy.  The enormity of this problem has made it clear that additional disaster assistance is necessary.”

The Congressional Budget Office has scored the cost of the proposed legislation at $2.19 billion, and the release said its cost would be offset by funds through the Troubled Asset Relief Program.