The CARES Act includes a provision to send most Americans direct payments of $1,200, or $2,400 for joint filers, plus $500 for each child. There are also adjustments to unemployment benefits and insurance, retirement account regulations, paid sick leave and healthcare coverage.
Over $23 billion has been earmarked for aid for the agriculture sector. The bill includes a $14 billion increase in USDA’s borrowing authority under the Commodity Credit Corporation to aid beleaguered farmers and ranchers, and $9.5 billion to assist specialty crop growers, direct retail farmers and livestock operators (i.e., ranchers and dairy farmers).
“Included in this relief package is critical help for our farm and ranch families, who are officially recognized by the U.S. government as critical infrastructure and must keep working in order to keep our grocery shelves stocked,” House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member K. Michael Conaway (R-Texas) said in a news release after the bill was passed. “If this legislation is to succeed in bolstering the economy, the overriding goal must be to get aid to all Americans as quickly as possible, including farmers, ranchers and rural America.”
Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue said of the bill, “At USDA we will deliver relief assistance to farmers and ranchers as quickly as possible. Americans across the nation are stepping up to the challenges facing them during these uncertain times. At USDA we are doing our part to ensure those who need help will get it, whether it’s through nutrition assistance, ensuring the food supply chain is safe and secure, or through new flexibilities with our Rural Development loan programs.”
Details of how those funds will be disbursed or how farmers and ranchers can qualify for aid have yet to be announced, but lawmakers voiced their support for a quick response from the USDA. A letter signed by a bipartisan group of over 145 lawmakers from both chambers of Congress was sent to Perdue this week, urging swift action in getting financial aid to producers affected by the pandemic.
Several industry groups, including the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, the United States Cattlemen’s Association and the American Farm Bureau, joined the call for swift action from the USDA. The American Farm Bureau president, Zippy Duvall, said, “America’s farmers and ranchers face enormous volatility as markets and supply chains rapidly react to changes, but I’ll say again that farmers and ranchers will not let Americans down. All members of Congress must understand that farmers have almost no control over the prices of the goods we produce, so fulfilling our commitment to America requires a team effort.” 
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Carrie Veselka
- Editor
- Progressive Cattleman
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