WASHINGTON, May 23, 2023 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published a Request for Information today, announcing public listening sessions and soliciting public comments on possible changes to prevented planting crop insurance coverage.  Coinciding with the public comment period, USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) will hold in-person and virtual listening sessions June through August. This includes in-person listening sessions in Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, New Mexico, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Texas. Meanwhile, RMA will accept written comments through its request for information until September 1.

“We truly care what our customers – the Nation’s agricultural producers – have to say. That’s why we’re hosting listening sessions in 12 states in addition to accepting written comments,” said RMA Administrator Marcia Bunger. “We listen to their needs so that we can adapt, improve, and help them manage their risks and provide better opportunities to protect their operations.”

The request for information on prevented planting requests input on prevented planting topics to include:

• Harvest Price Option – Feedback on whether to allow the prevented planting payment calculations to be based on the higher of projected price or harvest price under the revenue protection plan of insurance.
• “1 in 4” Rule – Input on the challenges or experiences since the rule (to be eligible for a prevented planting coverage acreage must have been planted to a crop, insured, and harvested in at least 1 out of the previous 4 crop years) was implemented nationwide.
• 10 percent additional coverage option – Input on if RMA should reinstate the option to buy-up prevented planting coverage by 10 percent.
• Contract price – Whether prevented planting costs are higher for contracted crops and how prevented planting payments should be calculated for contract crops.
• General – Willingness to pay additional premium for expanded prevented planting benefits, recommendations on other prevented planting limitations, etc.  

RMA will hold a virtual listening session via Microsoft Teams on June 8 and at least a dozen in-person sessions over the next few months. Additional details on the listening sessions are available on the RMA website.

The request for information, which includes details for submitting feedback, is available in this Federal Register notice.

Prevented planting insurance provisions provide valuable coverage when extreme weather conditions prevent expected plantings. Prevented planting is when a producer is unable to plant an insured crop due to an insurable cause of loss in time to grow a viable crop. Final planting dates and late planting periods are detailed in a producer’s crop insurance policy, and they vary by crop and location. Prevented planting coverage is intended to assist with normal costs associated with preparing the land up to the point of seed going into the ground (pre-plant costs).

More Information

Crop insurance is sold and delivered solely through private crop insurance agents. A list of crop insurance agents is available at all USDA Service Centers and online at the RMA Agent Locator. Learn more about crop insurance and the modern farm safety net at rma.usda.gov or by contacting your RMA Regional Office.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit usda.gov.

Note: The news release was updated on May 24 to say in-person listening sessions will occur in 12 states, including Iowa. 

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