USDA to open county offices, restart farmer aid despite shutdown

President Trump is directing the U.S. Department of Agriculture to free up billions of dollars in farmer aid frozen by the government shutdown.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said her department on Thursday will reopen Farm Service Agency offices where farmers process loans and get payments under the Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage programs, which protect against sudden revenue losses.

The USDA “will resume Farm Service Agency core operations, including critical services for farm loan processing, ARC/PLC payments, and other programs — over $3 Billion in assistance farmers have counted on in their business planning decisions,” Ms. Rollins wrote on X.

She said the checks will help farmers deliver payments for heavy equipment or rent for their land.

“They are not able to make those without these checks coming in,” Ms. Rollins said on Fox Business.

U.S. farmers are a key bloc of political support for Mr. Trump. Roughly 78% of voters in America’s most farming-dependent counties supported him in last year’s election, according to Investigate Midwest.

Yet the nation’s growers are facing tough times. Fertilizer and equipment costs are up, partly due to U.S.-imposed tariffs, while crop prices are down and China refuses to buy American soybeans after making large purchases in past years.

Farmers are upset to see China buy soybeans from Argentina, a South American country receiving a financial lifeline from the Trump administration.

Further, the president proposed buying beef from Argentina to increase supply and bring down consumer prices, angering U.S. cattlemen.

The administration has been mulling ways to help farmers, though it said the shutdown makes it difficult.

GOP leaders are unable to overcome a filibuster to pass a funding bill through the Senate as Democrats demand an extension of supersized Obamacare subsidies.

“President Trump is committed to supporting America’s farmers and ranchers, and this action will release over $3 billion in assistance for farmers that Democrats in Congress have held up for over 20 days,” the USDA said in a statement.

The county offices will be staffed by two county office employees, five days a week, and draw down funds from the Commodity Credit Corp., a financing arm of the USDA.

Democrats say Mr. Trump created headaches for farmers through his tariffs and trade wars, adding that GOP leaders have a responsibility to negotiate on health subsidies to win their votes to end the shutdown.

Mr. Trump and Republican leaders say Democrats are being stubborn and caving to a far-left wing of the party that wants to resist the administration.

“President Trump will not let the radical left Democrat shutdown impact critical USDA services while harvest is underway across the country,” Ms. Rollins wrote on X. “[Mr. Trump] is standing up for our farmers while Democrats obstruct. Special thanks to our great USDA employees who continue to work without pay to serve our farmers and ranchers.”

Republican lawmakers from agriculture-heavy states praised the administration for reopening county offices.

“We’ve heard from producers who are selling their livestock and their grain who can’t get their checks endorsed while the government has been shut down, resulting in missed loan payments,” Sen. Mike Rounds, South Dakota Republican, said. “Many producers use the FSA as a lender, and they need to be able to release these funds as their loans are paid off.”

On X, Sen. John Hoeven, North Dakota Republican, called it “good news,” while Rep. Dusty Johnson, South Dakota Republican, called it a critical “lifeline for our producers.”

The American Soybean Association, which is hoping to resume exporting the staple crop to China, thanked the administration for restoring critical functions at the USDA.

“This action provides U.S. soy growers with essential services during harvest season,” the group said on X. “ASA will continue urging timely delivery of assistance & certainty for farmers.”

Rep. Angie Craig, the ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, said opening FSA offices was the right move. 

Yet she questioned the timing of the move and urged the USDA to maintain other benefits, including food stamps — formally known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

“I am glad the administration is finally doing right by America’s farmers by partially opening FSA offices, though I question why the administration waited so long and made this decision only after putting farmers through three weeks of uncertainty,” Ms. Craig, of Minnesota, wrote on X. “Now it’s time they do right by seniors, children and veterans and utilize the SNAP contingency fund to ensure benefits can be provided for November.”