Division B, Title I, of the Extending
Government Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act (Pub. L.
117-43) provides $10 billion for necessary expenses related to
losses of crops, trees, bushes, and vines due to weather events
occurring in calendar years 2020 and 2021. Eligible disaster events
include drought, wildfire, hurricane, floods, derechos, excessive
heat, winter storms, freeze (including polar vortex) smoke
exposure, and excessive moisture. Losses due to drought are only
eligible for assistance if any area of a county was rated by the
U.S. Drought Monitor as D2 for eight consecutive weeks or D3 or
higher level of drought intensity. Similar to the Emergency
Livestock Relief Program, ERP will be implemented under two phases.
The first phase will leverage crop insurance and NAP claim data;
RMA will calculate the ERP benefit for insured producers based on
elevated guarantees using the ERP factors as shown in the below
table and provide that information to FSA, and FSA will calculate
the ERP benefit similarly for NAP producers and then using the data
from both RMA and what FSA calculated for NAP, generate a prefilled
application that will be sent to identified producers. The
application requires little new information from the producer (e.g.
shares if not on file), but is important as a clear certification
that the loss was a result of an eligible disaster and that the
producer agrees to obtain risk management protection in the
subsequent two years.
The Farm Service Agency
(FSA) is requesting OMB approval on the emergency approval of a
collection of information necessary to implement the Emergency
Relief Program (ERP Phase 1), which will assist producers who
suffered losses of crops, trees, bushes, and vines due to
wildfires, hurricanes, floods, derechos, excessive heat, winter
storms, freeze (including a polar vortex), smoke exposure,
excessive moisture, qualifying drought, and related conditions
occurring in calendar years 2020 and 2021. FSA needs to disburse
the payments to the eligible producers quickly to cover the losses
of crops, trees, bushes and vines, and the payments will seriously
assist the producers not to consider making business decisions to
lose the farm business.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.