Cover Letter Draft

United States Department of Agriculture

National Agricultural Statistics Service

What should I do next?

Complete your survey in one of the following ways:

Online at www.agcounts.usda.gov. Online reporting is fast, cost-effective, and secure. All you need is the 17-digit survey code on the enclosed form to begin.

By mail or fax. Complete the survey questionnaire and mail it back in the return envelope provided or fax it to

(855) 415-3687.

February 14, 2020

Why am I getting this letter?

Enclosed is your 2019 Survey of Irrigation Organizations questionnaire. Please complete the questionnaire by April 23, 2020. Your information is important. It will help document changes in the irrigation industry and enable us to develop up-to-date industry data for you and policymakers.

H ow will the data be used?

As irrigation needs change in our current farming environment, industry leaders and policymakers are interested in the survey data. In this survey we define irrigation organizations as a group of individuals, a company, a governmental district or agency, or an individual that operates facilities to supply irrigation water to two or more farms or ranches, or those who store irrigation water.

If you do not respond by April 23, 2020, we may contact you to arrange a telephone or personal interview.

The results of this survey will be kept confidential and will be available in aggregate form only, ensuring that no individual operation or producer can be identified, as required by federal law. We will publish the survey findings in the [Irrigation Organizations] report, to be released [May 8], 2020.

Thank you for participating and for your support of agricultural statistics and U.S. agriculture. If you have any questions or concerns, please call 1-888-424-7828.

Sincerely,

Joseph L. Parsons

Chairperson, Agricultural Statistics Board

U.S. Department of Agriculture

National Agricultural Statistics Service

Enclosure

1400 Independence Avenue, SW · Washington, D.C. 20250

www.nass.usda.gov

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