Drought disaster declaration: DeWitt farmers may qualify for emergency loans

  • Courtesy photo via DeWitt Office of Emergency Management Facebook Page.
    Courtesy photo via DeWitt Office of Emergency Management Facebook Page.

    DeWitt County farmers may qualify as eligible for low-interest emergency loans following an April 18 disaster declaration caused by drought from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Texas State Farm Service Agency (FSA).

     

    The Secretary of Agriculture designated five Texas counties as primary natural disaster areas, including Goliad County. DeWitt County is one of the 24 counties sharing a border with the primary natural disaster areas, making many local family farmers eligible for emergency loans from the FSA.

     

    For the purpose of determining loan security values for applications, the incidence period began on April 12, and applications are accepted through Dec. 19, according to the secretarial disaster declaration. 

     

    DeWitt County Judge Daryl Fowler explained in a May 23 interview with the Yoakum Herald-Times that he has spoken with several local farm operators that the drought has negatively impacted.

     

    “Quite a few ranchers have told me that because of the costs of fertilizer (and) liquid nitrogen (fertilizer) their hayfields tripling in the last year, they are foregoing that activity. Which, in turn, will produce a lower yield even if there is rain…” said Fowler. “The same ranchers are also making an early distribution sale of their fall cash crops in order to avoid having to supplement them during the summer. Economically (that means), they'll be selling calves that they would normally sell at 500 or 600 pounds at a weight of 350 to 400 pounds each.”

     

    While the secretarial disaster declaration does indicate severe weather patterns, Fowler explained that he had seen multiple similar declarations during his time as county judge.

     

    “It's not out of the ordinary. This is probably – in my years here – the third or fourth 

    (drought-related disaster declaration) that I've seen come through here,” Fowler said. “We've had periodic droughts – it seems – every four years or so. But some are harsher than others; (the) most memorable one is from 2010 and 2011.”

     

    Eligibility information for FSA EM loan assistance is detailed in section 321 (a) of the Consolidated  Farm and Rural Development Act – available online at fsa.usda.gov.