The US Department of Agriculture has begun accepting applications for financial relief of up to $500,000 for farmers who have faced discrimination in its lending programs.
Opening the application process is a step forward in the department’s effort to remedy decades of discrimination felt by farmers of color after a previous push by the Biden administration to provide payouts faced legal hurdles.
Applications are being accepted through October 31, and will be reviewed in November and December, with payments reaching those eligible “soon” after, according to the USDA.
Any farmer, forest landowner or rancher who experienced discrimination by the department in its farm loan programs prior to January 1, 2021, and/or has assigned or assumed USDA farm loan debt “that was the subject of USDA discrimination” prior to that date are eligible for the program. Eligible claims include discrimination related to race, age, sexual identity, gender, religion, disability, marital status and “retaliation for prior civil rights activity,” according to the department.
The USDA said farmers who received payments as part of discrimination lawsuits filed against the department – including class-action lawsuits brought by Black and Native American farmers – will be eligible to apply.
The payments are being provided as part of a provision of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act that allows farmers of all backgrounds, regardless of race, to receive assistance up to $500,000 “as determined to be appropriate based on any consequences experienced from the discrimination.”
Applicants, however, will likely not receive the max payout, depending on how many applications are received and approved for payment, a USDA official told CNN. The payments are not tax exempt but the agency is looking into whether something can be done in that regard, the official said.
The courts previously blocked debt relief payments to farmers of color under the Covid-19 relief package, signed into law by President Joe Biden in March 2021, after White farmers filed more than a dozen lawsuits claiming the payments of up to 120% of outstanding debt for those who had been “subjected to racial or ethnic prejudice because of their identity as members of a group without regard to their individual qualities” was racially discriminatory.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the opening of the application process marks “an important step in delivering on our commitment of providing financial assistance to those who faced discrimination in USDA farm lending, as swiftly and efficiently as possible.”
“USDA will continue to work with our national vendor partners and community-based organizations to make sure eligible farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners have clear information about what is available to them, how to apply, and where to obtain assistance with their questions at each step of the way,” Vilsack said in a statement.
The Midtown Group was selected as the national administrator to oversee the program. It will review and process applications using standards set forth by the USDA, distribute payments, lead a national call center and provide technical assistance related to the applications.
Community organizations are also helping with outreach about the application process and technical assistance, the USDA said.
Applications can be submitted online at https://22007apply.gov/home.html, by mail or at certain local offices.
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