USDA expedites $16 billion in disaster aid for farmers... USDA announced that farmers who suffered eligible crop losses in 2023 and 2024 can now apply for $16 billion in disaster assistance through the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program (SDRP). The move aims to deliver Congressionally mandated relief quickly, with USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) rolling out payments in two stages.
- Stage 1 applications open July 10 for producers who received crop insurance or NAP disaster assistance for 2023-2024 losses. Prefilled forms are being mailed to eligible producers.
- Stage 2 — targeting shallow or uncovered losses — will launch in early fall.
Program highlights
- Eligibility: Losses must be due to natural disasters in 2023 or 2024, including drought, wildfires, floods, hurricanes and other severe weather.
- Application: Producers must submit FSA-526 forms at local FSA offices. Stage 1 payments are based on existing crop insurance or NAP loss data, with payment capped at 90% of loss and subject to a 35% SDRP payment factor.
- Requirements: Producers receiving aid must maintain crop insurance or NAP coverage for the next two years at 60% or higher, or repay the assistance with interest.
- Exclusions: Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine and Massachusetts are excluded from SDRP but will use state block grants funded by the American Relief Act.
This announcement is part of a broader $30 billion congressional disaster aid package for farmers and ranchers in 2025. To date, USDA has already distributed over $7.8 billion via the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program and more than $1 billion through the Emergency Livestock Relief Program for losses in 2023 and 2024.
Rollins: ‘No amnesty’ for migrant farm workers... USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins made clear during a Tuesday press conference that there will be “no amnesty” for undocumented migrant farm workers. She stated that mass deportations of undocumented farm laborers would continue but emphasized these would be conducted in a “strategic and intentional way” to avoid jeopardizing the nation’s food supply. Rollins reiterated that President Trump has been “unequivocal” on this point, and that the administration is committed to ensuring a transition toward a 100% American workforce in agriculture.
Rollins also addressed the role of Medicaid recipients in the future agricultural workforce. She pointed to the 34 million able-bodied adults enrolled in Medicaid as a potential labor pool, particularly as new work requirements under the recently enacted One Big Beautiful Bill Act begin to take effect. Rollins suggested that these individuals could help fill the labor gap created by the deportation of undocumented workers.
She further explained that the administration views the solution to farm labor shortages as a combination of: automation in agriculture, regulatory reforms and utilizing able-bodied Medicaid recipients who will now be subject to new federal work requirements under the OBBB Act. Rollins’ remarks signal a significant policy shift in U.S. farm labor, focusing on domestic labor sources and automation, with no pathway to legal status for undocumented farmworkers.
EPA hears wide-ranging testimony on RFS volume proposals... During a full-day hearing on Tuesday, stakeholders from across the energy, agriculture and environmental sectors voiced strong and often divergent opinions on the EPA’s proposed Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs) for 2026 and 2027.
Key points
- Biofuel industry support: Leaders from the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), Growth Energy, and the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) praised the proposed RVOs, particularly the maintenance of 15 billion gallons for conventional renewable fuels. They argued these targets would provide market certainty, support U.S. farmers, bolster rural economies, and encourage further investment in biofuel infrastructure. Industry representatives also welcomed provisions to reallocate volumes lost to small refinery exemptions and to reduce credits for imported fuels, which they say will reinforce domestic agriculture.
- Clean Fuels Alliance perspective: The Clean Fuels Alliance America highlighted the growth in domestic biodiesel and renewable diesel production, noting that U.S. producers supplied over 5 billion gallons in 2024. They urged the EPA to maintain strong volume targets, citing substantial industry investments and the need for consistent policy to support continued expansion.
- Environmental activist concerns: Environmental organizations, including Earthjustice, criticized the EPA’s approach, warning that higher mandates for crop-based biofuels could drive large-scale land conversion, harm biodiversity, and potentially increase greenhouse gas emissions. They argued that EPA’s own analysis shows the climate benefits of such fuels are uncertain or even negative, and called for lower mandates and a reassessment of whether crop-based biofuels meet statutory greenhouse gas reduction thresholds.
- Economic and food security issues: Critics of the proposed rule also highlighted potential increases in food and fuel prices, with estimates of $4.8 billion in higher food costs and $13.4 billion in additional fuel expenses over two years. Some testimony challenged the EPA’s calculation of economic benefits, noting that many projected gains simply shift activity from other sectors rather than creating net new jobs or wealth.
Next steps: EPA will consider the testimony and written comments before finalizing the RVOs later this year. The debate underscores ongoing tensions between energy security, environmental protection, and economic interests as the U.S. seeks to balance its renewable fuel policies.
USDA approves just over 200,000 acres for CRP general signup... USDA has accepted 203,283 acres for enrollment in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) from this year’s general signup, with contracts to begin Oct. 1, 2025. Out of 261,359 acres offered, 255,994 acres were eligible for ranking, and only those scoring at least 202 on the Environmental Benefits Index (EBI) were deemed “basically acceptable.” Kansas led all states with 70,813 acres in acceptable offers (they have not yet accepted all these acres, just declared them to be acceptable for entry into CRP), followed by Washington (19,111 acres), Nebraska (18,114 acres) and Texas (12,201 acres). No other state had more than 10,000 acres approved.
USDA has not disclosed how many expiring CRP contracts set to mature on Sept. 30, 2025, were re-offered or re-enrolled. As of late May, there were 25.9 million acres enrolled in CRP — close to the program’s 27-million-acre cap — with 956,406 acres scheduled to expire this fall. The ongoing continuous CRP signup, which started May 12, is now extended through July 31. USDA has yet to announce enrollment numbers for this round or any details on the CRP Grasslands signup, leaving questions about the program’s future and available acreage heading into the next farm bill.