Justification for Emergency Approval

-

USDA

United States Department of Agriculture
Office of the Secretary

Washington, D.C. 20250

TO:

Drew Perraut
Office of Management and Budget Desk Officer

THROUGH: Ruth Brown
Department Clearance Office
FROM:

Kathleen A. Merrigan
Deputy Secretary

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OCT 1 5 2010

I

SUBJECT:

Request for Emergency Approval for a New Information Collection Package­
Crop Assistance Program (CAP)

This request is for the Office of Management and Budget review and emergency approval of a
collection of information necessary to implement the Crop Assistance Program (CAP). The
reason for this emergency approval request is that the producers in 953 counties would be
seriously harmed if the Department's Farm Service Agency (FSA) delays making the payments
to the producers for their crop losses due to the natural disaster.
The FSA will provide CAP payments to eligible agricultural producers who have crop acreage
located in a primary disaster county as designated by the Secretary as a result of excessive
moisture or related condition. To be eligible under CAP, a producer must have suffered a 5
percent or greater loss in quantity or quality due to disaster in the 2009 crop year. Crops include
upland cotton, long grain rice, medium or short grain rice, soybean, and sweet potato. CAP
funding is authorized by Section 32 of the Agricultural Adjustment Act of August 24, 1935, that
allows the Secretary of Agriculture to use funds to help reestablish the purchasing power of
farmers.
The signup period for CAP payments is expected to be October 18, 2010, through December 1,
2010 (the 45-day period after the rule is published). The interim rule will be published in the
Federal Register to provide guidance and notify applicants of the signup period. Approximately
291 ,091 producers are expected to apply for CAP payments.

An Equal Opponunity Employer

Memorandum to Drew Perraut
Page 2
FSA needs to collect the following information from applicants:
It

It

1 he crops tor which an applicant certifies
disaster for
and

a 5 percent or greater loss due to

Whether each claimed loss was in quantity or quality.

Producers are also required to have forms CCC-902, Farm Operating Plan for Individual or
Legal
CCC-926, Average Adjusted Gross Income Statement; AD-I 026, Highly Erodible
Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation Certification; and
Report
on
to
CAP payments.
We are requesting emergency approval of a new information collection package by
10, order to quickly provide assistance to farmers and to complete CAP
October IS,
payment processing before initiating the processing applications
2009 assistance under the
Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments (SURE) Program. Because CAP payments are
revenue, it is advantageous to producers and FSA to complete CAP payment processing in
advance of 2009 crop year
payment processing. Otherwise, SURE payment processing
will have to be rerun to capture revenue.
could involve forcing participants to
multiple trips to county
and it could reauire additional administrative time to
SURE applications.
If there are any questions or concerns,
at (202) 720-4283.

call

Holder at (202) 205-5851 or Mary Ann