USDA Designates Three Counties in Utah as a Primary Natural Disaster Area with Assistance to Producers in Surrounding States

Contact: Latawnya.Dia@wdc.usda.gov

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2018 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated Kane, San Juan and Wayne counties in Utah as primary natural disaster areas due to losses and damages caused by a recent drought.

Farmers and ranchers in the contiguous counties of Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Piute, Sevier and Washington in Utah also qualify for natural disaster assistance.

Farmers and ranchers in the following contiguous counties in Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico also qualify for natural disaster assistance. Those counties are: 

Arizona
Apache, Coconino, Mohave and Navajo

Colorado
Dolores, Mesa, Montezuma, Montrose and San Miguel 

New Mexico
San Juan

Qualified farm operators in the designated areas eligible for the Farm Service Agency’s (FSA’s) emergency (EM) loans, provided eligibility requirements are met. Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of the declaration of April 12, 2018, to apply for loans to help cover part of their actual losses. FSA will consider each loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability. FSA has a variety of programs, in addition to the EM loan program, to help eligible farmers recover from the impacts of this disaster.

Other FSA programs that can provide assistance, but do not require a disaster declaration, include: Operating and Farm Ownership Loans; the Emergency Conservation Program; Livestock Forage Disaster Program; Livestock Indemnity Program; Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program; and the Tree Assistance Program. Interested farmers may contact their local USDA service centers for further information on eligibility requirements and application procedures for these and other programs. Additional information is also available online at http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov.

FSA news releases are available on FSA’s website at www.fsa.usda.gov via the “Newsroom” link.