USDA Announces FY 2000 Payments; Supplemental Payments Are Being Made

October 27, 1999

USDA will make fiscal year 2000 production flexibility contract payments totaling $5.1 billion. The payments are part of the 1996 farm law. Eligible farmers may choose to receive their payments all at once or in two equal payments at any time during the fiscal year.

In addition, eligible farmers will receive supplemental flexibility contract payments as part of the fiscal 2000 agricultural appropriations bill equal to their regular 1999 contract payments.

The states receiving the largest shares of the FY 2000 payments are Iowa ($481 million), Texas ($454 million), Illinois ($423 million), Kansas ($364 million) and Nebraska $362 million).

Those same states' 1999 production flexibility contract payments were $520 million for Iowa, $472 million for Texas, $454 million for Illinois, $388 million for Nebraska and $386 million for Kansas.

The supplemental payments for income assistance to be made from fiscal 2000 appropriations will equal the contract payments made for 1999. That will leave some money in reserve since the full appropriation for the supplemental payments totaled $5.544 billion and the contract payments made for 1999 totaled $5.477 billion.

Eligible farmers began receiving the supplemental payments Monday, according to Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman, and he said it will take up to two weeks to get all the payments out. A farmer may delay receipt of the fiscal 2000 contact payment, taking it in one or two installments at the farmer's discretion, but the supplemental payment is not subject to discretionary receipt,. according to USDA officials.

Usually the regular contract payment is made in two installments, one in January, the other the following October. Farmers must go to their local Farm Service Agency office to determine how they want to receive their fiscal 2000 contract payments.