Wildfires

When Farmers Can Expect the Next Round of American Relief Act Payments

Tue, 03 Jun 2025 13:51:11 GMT

USDA is currently in the trenches of issuing the nearly $31 billion in total disaster and emergency relief aid to farmers and ranchers in four stages. That money was appropriated by Congress as part of the American Relief Act, which was passed in December of 2024. In an exclusive interview with Farm Journal on Monday, USDA Deputy Undersecretary Brooke Appleton said the next round of disaster aid payments could be coming the first full week of July.

USDA began issuing the $1 billion in emergency livestock relief program payments last week, which is the latest in a series of disaster and emergency relief. Appleton told Farm Journal that instead of holding the money and issuing it all at once, USDA decided to issue the payments in four phases, as USDA wanted to get assistance out to producers as quickly as possible.

“We had ECAP (Emergency Commodity Assistance Program) , we now have the Emergency Livestock Relief Program, we’re going to have supplemental disaster relief, and then we’re going to have another emergency livestock relief program to cover the flood losses that we saw in ‘23 and ’24,” Appleton said. “So, we’re kind of doing it in stages, it should stream out all through the summer really, and so I’m hoping that that kind of can relieve some of that financial stress.”

Appleton said USDA has issued $7.7 billion out of the appropriated $10 billion in direct payments under ECAP so far, which was the first stage of payments. Sign-ups for that program began in March. USDA initially issued 85% of a producer’s projected payment, with the remaining 15% expected after sign-ups close on Aug. 15.

Just last week, USDA announced the details surrounding $1 billion in Emergency Livestock Relief Program payments , which is the second phase of the American Relief Act. Those payments are being dispersed now, and it covers grazing losses due to eligible drought or wildfire events that happened in 2023 and 2024. That round of the program doesn’t require producers to sign up, as USDA is using existing information. Since the program was announced on May 29, USDA says it’s dispersed more than $641 million in payments to livestock producers who suffered grazing losses during that time.

“FSA is leveraging existing livestock forage disaster program data to streamline these payments and calculations to expedite that relief. So this was unlike most of our programs, farmers and ranchers didn’t have to go into the office to sign up,” Appleton said. “We already have the information. So those emergency relief payments were automatically issued to producers who had already had their data into their FSA office. And those payments started going out in earnest last week, so May 30.”

The next round of American Relief Act disaster aid payments is the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program, which is the larger amount appropriated by Congress. Appleton told Farm Journal details surrounding those payments are being prepared now, and USDA expects to issue those payments next month. The amount of money that will go out during the next round isn’t known at this time, as a USDA official says the agency is still “working diligently to balance the needs with the available funding.”

“The larger supplemental disaster program that is part of that is making its way through the process right now at USDA and other government agencies,” Appleton said. “The timeline for that, we’re targeting to sign up farmers by the first full week in July, so maybe the week of July 7. That will be literally every crop production loss that has happened for ‘23 and ’24, and that’s just additional disaster assistance that was legislated by Congress.”

Once those payments are released, USDA’s final phase of the American Relief Act will be another emergency livestock relief program, but this covers flood losses producers saw in 2023 and 2024.

Appleton says that’s been the most difficult program to outline and detail, as USDA has never administered a disaster program for livestock that covered losses due to flooding.

“We’ve never had a disaster program for livestock that triggered on flooding, so that piece of it is going to take us a little bit longer,” she said. “And that’s something that’s another piece of this larger disaster package. It’s going to roll out later this summer, but as these programs are ready to go and ready to roll out, we’re focused on doing it as soon as we can, rather than holding them all and doing it all at once. We want to make sure as soon is the assistance is ready to go, we are getting it out and we’re getting it to the folks who need it.”

Congress earmarked $2 billion for livestock losses due to droughts, wildfires and floods. The first livestock disaster aid announced last week totaled $1 billion, which means another $1 billion should be dispersed through the livestock disaster payments that cover losses due to flooding.

USDA says it is fully committed to expediting remaining disaster assistance provided by the American Relief Act 2025. On May 7, it launched its 2023/2024 Supplemental Disaster Assistance public landing page where the status of USDA disaster assistance and block grant rollout timeline can be tracked.

Rollins Says USDA Will Announce Application Process for $21 Billion in Disaster Aid Within Days

Wed, 07 May 2025 18:44:02 GMT

In her first hearing on Capitol Hill since the confirmation process earlier this year, Secretary Brooke Rollins faced the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, fielding questions on everything from USDA’s bold budget cuts and frozen funding to the fate of the nearly $21 billion in disaster aid.

Rollins fiercely defended the cuts, continuing to argue that it is a way to make USDA more effective and more efficient. She also told the committee that farmers will be able to sign up for the disaster aid by the end of May.

Congress approved the disaster aid on Dec. 21, 2024. While the $10 billion in Emergency Commodity Assistance Program (ECAP) was passed the same day, it was separate and came with a clear deadline on when USDA had to disperse those funds. In the hearing this week, Rollins admitted the disaster aid program has been more complicated to roll out.

“That one’s a little more complicated than the ECAP, the disaster or the emergency relief payments, but we’re really close and within a matter of days or weeks, certainly by the end of this month, that money will begin moving,” Rollins said on Tuesday.

The nearly $21 billion in disaster aid targets agricultural losses from natural disasters in 2023 and 2024, which includes:

Droughts
Hurricanes
Floods
Wildfires
And other extreme weather events.

Of those funds, $2 billion is earmarked for livestock losses attributed to droughts wildfires and floods. There is also an allocation of $220 million that will be distributed through block grants to smaller agricultural states with limited farm income and acreage.

“We are within days of announcing the application process,” Rollins said. “Of course, that’s a little more complicated because we don’t have the specifics, and it isn’t, as [Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D.] mentioned, in North Dakota, 15,794 of your farmers and ranchers have received money through that first tranche, through the first $10 billion, the emergency aid. On the weather-related programs, that application opens in the next week or two. And we will be moving very, very quickly.”

.@SecRollins testifies before Congress: "When farmers prosper, rural America prospers." pic.twitter.com/rXwV12JPDD
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 6, 2025

According to Pro Farmer, the disaster aid is intended to cover losses in revenue, production quality, and infrastructure for crops, livestock and timber. And most of the aid is expected to be administered through USDA’s Emergency Relief Program (ERP), which has been used for similar disaster relief in previous years. However, USDA has indicated the new program will be more farmer-friendly than the Biden administration’s implementation of the last ag disaster funds.

Rollins says the rollout of the disaster aid funds is “a long time coming,” bacause it is related to disasters that happened as long as two years ago.

“And so ensuring that we get that out as quickly as we possibly can with the team that we have in place,” Rollins said. “I’m really proud of, I believe, how efficiently and how quickly the team moved out that first tranche. And I believe that you’ll see the same sort of efficiency and effectiveness with the second tranche, so it’s within the coming weeks.”

Rollins Fiercely Defends Cuts at USDA

Also in the hearing, Rollins defended recent budget and DOGE cuts, saying her team is eliminating what she called wasteful DEI spending, fraud and abuse in all USDA programs. She argued the plan is to rebuild USDA to put farmers first.

Rollins also discussed some frozen funds at the agency and when a review of them will be completed.

“We are working around the clock, going line by line, we’re down to the final 5 billion out of, I believe, almost 20 billion of frozen funds, but $5 billion is a lot of money,” Rollins said. “And when you think about that in terms of grant or contract and moving that out quickly, we’re very helpful to keep moving through that very, very quickly and have that done very soon.”

Rollins was also asked about the 15,000 USDA employees who have taken buyout offers from the federal government . Reports show that accounts for nearly USDA’s total workforece, and impacts farmer-facing agencies such as Natural Resources Conservation Service and Farm Service Agency.

“The 15,000 number, it is less than 15% of our total workforce,” Rollins said. “I realize that’s still a very, very big number. But I think it’s important to realize in the context that every year USDA, through attrition loses between 8,000 and 10,000 employees. So, it’s a massive government agency, but they’re refilled. Well, and that’s what we are looking to refill. The front liners, that’s I was talking about right now. So whether it’s FSA, APHIS, the Wildland Firefighters, those are through a memorandum I just signed, we are actively looking and recruiting to fill those positions that are integral to the efforts and the key front line.”

Senator Patty Murray, D-Wash., followed up and asked, “So, you let people go, and you’re looking for new people to fill the positions that they had experienced in?”

“We’re having those discussions right now,” Rollins said. “We are working with all of you around the country, in your states. We believe our firefighters are operationally ready for wildfire season. Our FSA offices, we are making things more efficient, but bringing on new people that could potentially be a game changer in those offices.”

The workforce reduction is part of the federal government’s current Deferred Resignation Program (DRP), which is the voluntary program that allows eligible federal employees to resign in advance while continuing to receive pay and benefits until Sept. 30.

Rollins then clarified and explained the 15,000 USDA employees who accepted the buyouts, weren’t employees who were fired, they were resignations.

“None of those people were fired,” she added. “So, if they want to come back, and if they were in a key position, then we would love to have that conversation.”

Rollins said the latest round of DRPs, which happened in April, USDA didn’t accept some of the resignations, specifically if those employees were in what Rollins called “key positions,” which includes APHIS, FSA, etc.

“We are very intentionally approaching this,” she said. “Have we done it perfectly? No. Any type of whole scale change, and big effort to basically realign an entire government agency is difficult. And we know that, and we know it hasn’t been perfect, but we’re working every day to solve for a lot of this, and I think we’re making a lot of really good progress.”

USDA Spends $400 Million a Day on Food Assistance Programs

The other hot button topic during the hearing was food assistance. The secretary pointed out USDA spends more than $400 million a day on food assistance programs and said ending COVID-era funding programs doesn’t mean defunding food assistance.

You can listen to her pointed comments in the video below.

USDA alone spends $400+ MILLION each day on food assistance programs.

Ending COVID-era funding programs doesn’t defund food assistance. It ensures we’re good stewards of taxpayer dollars. pic.twitter.com/3lT7Fu6or9
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) May 6, 2025

Poor Air Quality from Wildfire Smoke can put Livestock, Pets at Risk

Wed, 28 Jun 2023 19:02:11 GMT

Wildfire smoke from Canada returned to the upper Midwest and extended to the Mid-South and Mid-Atlantic this week, resulting in poor air quality in some regions along with reduced visibility.

The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a report on Wednesday, saying “wildfire smoke from Canada will reduce air quality over parts of the Upper/Middle Mississippi Valley, Great Lakes, Western Ohio Valley, Central Appalachians, and Mid-Atlantic, prompting Air Quality Warnings over the area.”

Unhealthy levels of pollutants from the smoke spread across states in those regions including most of Michigan and Wisconsin and parts of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, according to tracker AirNow.gov.

The NWS is encouraging anyone with underlying lung conditions or asthma – especially children and the elderly – to limit their time outdoors in those regions affected by wildfire smoke.

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) advises monitoring pets and farm animals that could also be affected by the smoke.

“If you can see or feel the effects of smoke yourself, you also should take precautions to keep your animals – both pets and livestock – safe,” the AVMA encourages on its website.

Animals with cardiovascular or respiratory disease are especially at risk from smoke and should be closely watched during all periods of poor air quality.

Look for the following signs of possible smoke or dust irritation in animals, including:
• Coughing or gagging
• Difficulty breathing, including open mouth breathing and increased noise when breathing
• Eye irritation and excessive watering
• Inflammation of throat or mouth
• Nasal discharge
• Asthma-like symptoms
• Increased breathing rate
• Fatigue or weakness
• Disorientation or stumbling
• Reduced appetite and/or thirst

The wildfires range from British Columbia to Newfoundland and Labrador, and 239 were categorized by the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) on Tuesday as being “out of control.”

Reuters reports that Canada is wrestling with its worst-ever start to the wildfire season, which has already burned 6.5 million hectares (16 million acres), an area a little bigger than West Virginia.

As California Wildfires Rage, State Leaders, Students and Veterinarians Launch Effort to Help Rescue Livestock

Thu, 12 Aug 2021 14:09:48 GMT

Western wildfires continue to rage in the West , as California’s biggest wildfire is leading to widespread evacuations of livestock. And now there are efforts underway to care for animals left behind.

The Dixie Fire is the second largest in California’s history. It has destroyed thousands of acres of rangeland, including for migratory cattle.

Leaders from the University of California-Davis, veterinarians, and California legislators have launched a new program. It’s called the “California Veterinary Emergency Team.” Their job is to help rescue livestock and domestic animals during disasters.

Students from U.C. Davis are helping out at other fires. Also right now, Farm Bureau organizations in Butte, Sierra and Plumas counties in California are partnering to help feed and maintain livestock. Similar efforts are underway in Nevada County’s River Fire.

Oregon Farmers Not Liable While Fighting Wildfires

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:49:23 GMT

Oregon farmers will not be held liable while fighting wildfires in the state, thanks to a new law passed by the Oregon Legislature.

Senate Bill 290 encourages bystanders to assist people in emergencies without worry about being sued if something goes wrong. The law was inspired by last year’s Substation fire that destroyed 78,425 acres of dry wheat fields and grasslands.

Oregon wheat farmers used tractors and disc plows to cut firebreaks around homes and communities. Their quick response, according to Governor Bill Hansell, R-Athena, helped prevent the devastation of small towns such as Moro and Grass Valley.

“Farmers have been doing this ever since we began raising wheat,” said Hansell, whose family runs a wheat farm in Umatilla County.

One farmer, 64-year-old John Ruby, died trying to protect his neighbor’s home from the fire. Hansell said the tragedy raised concerns about potential liability for farmers and residents in a similar situation.

SB 290 states that a person who voluntarily joins the effort will not be held civilly liable for injury resulting from the “good faith performance” of firefighting activities. Professionally trained firefighters are not covered by the legislation.

“Anytime you’re talking about limiting liability for somebody who does something out on the landscape, or responds to an accident, we want to protect them if they’re acting in good faith,” said Blake Rowe, CEO of the Oregon Wheat Growers League.

The new law will become effective on Jan. 1, 2020.

Related stories:

Tractor Operator Dies In Oregon Wildfire

Wildfire Recovery: Lending a Helping Hand

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:48:45 GMT

Written by Ken Blight (Albion MI), Zach Ducheneaux (Eagle Butte, SD), and Jesse Larios (Brawley, CA). All are Lead Farmers in the Farm Journal Foundation’s Farmers Feed the World Program. They are also all cattle producers.

Early in March, a massive wildfire swept across the Southern Plains states, burning 1.5 million acres of grassland, and affecting farmers and ranchers in three states--Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. The human cost was significant--the rapidly moving fire killed seven people, either trying to save cattle or flee their homes. While the economic cost is still being tallied, we do know that at least 20,000 head of cattle and hogs were killed and an estimated 18,000 miles of fencing was destroyed.

Most Americans are unable to imagine living--let alone earning a livelihood-- in an area where the distance between neighbors is measured in miles rather than yards. The heart of this region is a weathered and tough group of Americans that for generations have provided our great nation with much of its beef supply. Although adversity is no stranger to these folks, the wildfires that raged through their ranches this early spring devastated even these rugged cattle producers. Asking for help is surely a foreign concept for a people as self-reliant as these. The isolation of living on the prairie leaves you with yourself, a few neighbors, and our creator to look out for each other. But this time, the wildfires left little for neighbors to share when entire herds, feed supply, equipment, barns and homes were consumed by the fires.

As Americans, we take a lot of pride in our country. Pride in our history, culture, and land but most of all, our willingness and ability to help others in times of need. We do not wait for FEMA to show up, but rather pitch in almost as soon as the wind dies down or the waters begin to recede. In many ways, the March wildfires in the Southern plains were Agriculture’s version of Katrina. In a matter of hours, the wildfires changed a landscape--both land and people. Our agricultural communities were immediately gathering vital commodities that they knew were going to be vital for the recovery of their fellow Ag members. Trailer after trailer, countless waving American Flags, were seen rolling down highways headed north, south, east, and west. Farmers from across the nation donated truckloads of hay and other supplies to help ease the initial shock of the devastating fires.

No one waited for government intervention, payment, or acknowledgement. Why?? That’s who we are. That’s how we were brought up. This sense of community is part of our culture, and our way of life. That’s the heartbeat of America. On occasions like this massive wildfire, and the Atlas snow storm in western South Dakota in the autumn of 2013 which killed thousands of cattle, we have seen the impact that a lack of specific infrastructure implemented by local, state, or federal officials have on a producer’s ability to recover. We hope that producers’ readiness to help a neighbor in need can serve as an example to public officials of the importance of having thoughtful, timely, and meaningful assistance available to those in distress in both town and country.

A few months have passed, but the hard pull of rebuilding the herds, fences, and facilities that took these hard-working families generations to build, has barely begun. Farm Journal Foundation and Farm Journal Media has teamed up with the Howard G. Buffet Foundation in establishing the Wildfire Relief Challenge to raise money for these ranchers to rebuild. For every dollar you donate, the Buffett Foundation will match with an additional dollar, up to a total of $1 million. Visit www.wildfirerelieffund.org to take part.

Please join us, as many in the agricultural community have already done, and help these hard-working farmers and ranchers to continue the work of rebuilding miles and miles of fence, restocking their herds and replacing equipment left in ashes. Since April, donations to the Wildfire Relief Challenge already totals more than $600,000. Let’s keep the momentum going!

Prepare Now for Livestock Disasters and Emergencies

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:13:58 GMT

Whether it is a wildfire, flood, tornado or an overturned truck, when disasters strike cattle operations, it can be difficult to see any “silver linings.” Beyond the bad news though, we find a couple positive outcomes. First, neighbors, friends, professional colleagues and even total strangers invariably join forces to help in any ways they can. Next, we can all learn from the experience, either directly or indirectly, and apply that knowledge to minimize the damage next time a disaster strikes.

With those outcomes in mind, a group of veterinarians and industry professionals, all with experience in livestock disasters and emergencies, joined forces to compile “ Responding to Natural Disasters and Emergencies in Beef Production ,” a 13-chapter guide published in the July 2018 issue of Veterinary Clinics: Food Animal Practice.

The project began after the March 2017 Starbuck Wildfire along the Kansas and Oklahoma border burned over 800,000 acres, destroying homes, fences and other facilities, killing thousands of cattle and displacing thousands more. Veterinarians Dan Thomson, at Kansas State University, Bob Smith, a consultant from Oklahoma and Christine Navarre at Louisiana State University planned the guide and identified veterinarians and industry professionals from around the country, all with direct experience in livestock disasters ranging from fires and hurricanes to blizzards and highway accidents. Dr. Smith served as consulting editor, and Drs. Thomson and Navarre served as editors and wrote the guide’s introduction.

“As we made our list of topics, we thought about our colleagues, friends, producers, and people who had expertise in these areas from firsthand experience to extensive training in food animal rescue and medicine,” Navarre and Thomson write. “Each article partners veterinarians from private practice, academia, and government organizations to bring practical, straightforward guidance on natural disasters. We are thankful for the great response and expertise that volunteered to complete this issue of Veterinary Clinics of North America: Food Animal Practice.”

Chapters and authors include:

Preface: Responding to Natural Disasters and Emergencies in Beef Production: Dan Thomson and Christine Navarre
Communication and Working with Authorities During Natural Disasters: Dee Ellis, Rebecca McConnico, and Jimmy Tickel
Cattle Assessment On-Site During Emergencies: Arthur Lee Jones, Renée Dawn Dewell, and Joanna Davis
Feeding and Watering Beef Cattle During Disasters: Justin W. Waggoner and K.C. Olson
Tornado Preparation and Response in Feedlot Cattle: Samantha L. Boyajian, Nels N. Lindberg, and David P. Gnad
Blizzards and Range Cattle: Management Before, During, and After the Storm: Russ Daly and Cynthia Marshall Faux
Management of Confined Cattle in Blizzard Conditions: David B. Sjeklocha
Wildfire Response in Range Cattle: David N. Rethorst, Randall K. Spare, and John L. Kellenberger
Preparation and Response to Truck Accidents on Highways Involving Cattle: Lisa Pederson, Jerry Yates, and Audry Wieman
Preparation and Response for Flooding Events in Beef Cattle: Wesley Bissett Jr, Carla Huston, and Christine B. Navarre
Managing Heat Stress Episodes in Confined Cattle: Kevin F. Sullivan and Terry L. Mader
Foreign Animal Disease Outbreaks: Danelle A. Bickett-Weddle, Michael W. Sanderson, and Elizabeth J. Parker
Humane Euthanasia and Carcass Disposal: Jan K. Shearer, Dee Griffin, and Scott E. Cotton
Mental Health During Environmental Crisis and Mass Incident Disasters: Erin Wasson and Audry Wieman

In Livestock Disasters and Emergencies, quick decisions, coordination and teamwork are critical. This guide draws on first-hand experiences of the contributing authors, along with their expertise in veterinary medicine, cattle management and animal welfare to enhance preparation, response and overall outcomes.

Learn more or subscribe for access from Veterinary Clinics: Food Animal Practice .

Firefighters Battling Wildfires in Kansas, Nebraska

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:10:02 GMT

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - Firefighters are battling dozens of wildfires in Kansas and Nebraska that have erupted since the weekend, even as calmer winds on Wednesday helped contain or extinguish most of them.

In Nebraska, a burned man was found crawling in a McCook farm field Tuesday afternoon as 50 mph wind gusts whipped flames down a ravine toward the Red Willow County community of 7,500 people. The man, who had camped out in the area, has been transferred to a burn center.

Kansas authorities said 50 fires have burned about 40 square miles (103.6 square kilometers). Improving weather conditions Wednesday left crews in 13 Kansas counties fighting blazes that are contained or almost out.

But a blaze that broke out Wednesday near Hamilton in Greenwood County prompted the Kansas Army National Guard to send six Black Hawk helicopters to assist with the firefighting operations.

This year’s wildfire outbreak in Kansas pales in comparison to March 2017 when some 2,000 firefighters battled a series of blazes that consumed more than 1,000 square miles, killed a truck driver, forced thousands to evacuate, and damaged or destroyed dozens of structures. Thousands of cattle also died.

Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer said the state has learned a lot in the last couple years.

“This is something that can get out of control very easily, so we’re quite concerned still,” Colyer said. “But we’re dealing with it.”

The governor attributed the successful efforts this year to improvements in coordination between state and local emergency responders.

“They’ve experienced a lot together after the last couple of years,” Colyer said. “They know each other by name now. They’re closer.”

In southwest Nebraska, crews were dispatched to eliminate dangerous hot spots left by a wildfire that destroyed a house and blackened hundreds of acres as it threatened McCook.

As officials called for evacuations, students and staff at McCook Elementary School were taken to McCook Senior High School several blocks away.

People at the state prisons’ Work Ethic Camp spotted the fire and reported it to local officials around 1:20 p.m. Tuesday, but camp spokeswoman Cristy Schwartz said the 189 inmates and nearly 50 staffers didn’t have to leave the grounds.

Chief Bill Elliott of the Red Willow Western Rural Fire Department said wind gusts knocked a power line into a shed about 2 miles (3 kilometers) from town, and sparks from the resulting short ignited dry brush below.

The blaze never entered the city proper, but the flames did destroy a house on the edge of town while the residents weren’t home, Elliott said.

“The house right beside it - only 30 feet away - was not damaged,” he said.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press.