Drought Commission Releases Report

May 17, 2000

The National Drought Policy Commission has released its final report, putting preparedness at the top of the list of national priorities in dealing with devastating dry conditions. The country has developed the capability to produce a wealth of basic weather, water, soil moisture, snow amount and climate observations without which preparedness would be difficult at best, the commission noted.

Created by Congress in 1998, the commission’s final report recommends preparedness over insurance, insurance over relief and incentives to producers and others to plan for droughts. Congress also is asked to establish a permanent National Drought Council to coordinate the many federal programs now involved in drought issues and to foster partnerships with state and local governments as well as non-governmental groups. Additional public information and training efforts also are suggested.

"Across the country we learned that individuals, citizen organizations, local and state governments, tribes and regional bodies are actively engaged in drought preparedness," the report says. "In many cases, these activities take place within the broader framework of comprehensive water management planning. Such planning is usually conducted by entities that range from water districts and large multi-county urban areas to state water resources agencies and regional river basin compacts and commissions."

The commission found more than 80 federal programs spread across various departments and agencies are directly or indirectly related to drought.

Insurance is one option individuals can choose to take on their own, the report notes, but for drought, the options are limited. Business interruption insurance is available in private insurance markets, but it generally is not tailored to the needs of small businesses in drought situations.

Crop insurance has been a "central feature" in U.S. agricultural policy for decades, and while farmers and ranchers are among the first to feel the impacts of drought, the current federal crop insurance program "covers only major field crops in all locations; it does not include all vegetable and lesser field crops in all locations nor does it cover livestock."

Among the commission’s recommendations:

"Our findings led us to conclude first that the United States should embrace a national drought policy with preparedness at its core. Federal resources should be dedicated to assisting non-federal interests and the public at large to prepare for drought. We therefore recommend that Congress pass a National Drought Preparedness Act which would establish a non-federal-federal partnership through a National Drought council ... to ensure that the goals of national drought policy are achieved."

The commission’s report and related documents can be obtained on the Internet at http://www.fsa.usda.gov/drought.