Impacts to California Agriculture
Congressional leaders were unable to broker an agreement to keep the government funded yesterday, leading to a "federal government shutdown." While some critical agencies and functions will continue to operate, most departments have enacted shutdown procedures that vary in scope. The following outlines some of the most relevant details for those in the agricultural industry. Please note this list is not exhaustive and is subject to change:
USDA Operations - The U.S. Department of Agriculture is expected to furlough approximately 42,000 employees (roughly 50%) during this unfunded period. According to their shutdown plan, they will continue operations relating to: some farm loan and conservation programs, core nutrition safety net programs, essential food safety operations, preparing and responding to wildland fires, animal and plant health emergency programs (such as new world screwworm), and others.
Operations most likely to cease include: payment processing, disaster assistance, technical assistance, regulatory-related travel and training, trade negotiations, timber sales, and long-term research studies.
In addition, most operations under the following subagencies will be halted: the Risk Management Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Foreign Agricultural Service, Food and Nutrition Service, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Economic Research Service (ERS), National Agricultural Statistical Service (NASS), and Rural Development.
Roughly one-third of US Forest Service staff will be furloughed during this period. A full readout of specific programs and agencies can be found at the shutdown plan link above.
Office Closures - Many state and local offices across multiple agencies have closed. This includes the majority of Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices, several Congressional district offices, and others.
According to the shutdown plan, "If [it] continues past 10 days, additionally, one farm loan employee and/or one county office farm program employee per service center will be excepted on call to complete certain loan processing items to protect the security interest of the government and to prevent the loss of security or loss of value to security for the borrower." This will not apply to new loans.
FSA Assistance - With the closure of FSA offices, many financial assistance programs will either be halted or delayed. This will also be true for much of the technical assistance provided by regional offices, pending potential changes due to emergency weather (and other) events.
Food and Drug Administration - Roughly 86% of FDA staff are expected to continue working during the shutdown under their contingency plan, with distinctions made between what are considered "exempted" and "excepted" staff.
Environmental Protection Agency - EPA is expected to retain only around 11% of their workforce during the shutdown. According to their shutdown plan, significant agency activities that will continue include:
Emergency and disaster assistance, Superfund response work where a failure to maintain operations would pose a threat to human life, exempted infrastructure-related projects, activities funded by Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) Fees, and others.
Data Availability - Despite the importance of many commodity and market reports, roughly 92% of staff within NASS and ERS are being furloughed. most data collection via the National Agricultural Statistics Service has been halted.
Public Lands Activities - New timber sales are not being awarded, and grazing permits are not being administered. Many operations will be limited across the various Department of the Interior (DOI). In addition, while there is a desire to keep National Parks open, parks will operate with skeleton crews, and the public should expect some closures. Fire suppression including fire fighters and all necessary equipment costs to protect life and property have been deemed essential and will continue.
Nutrition Programs - The Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) will likely face disruptions depending on states' abilities to bridge the gap via emergency funds.
Visa Processing - A prolonged lapse of funding will exacerbate processing delays for the Office of Foreign Labor Certification, which certifies H-2A visas.
Farm Bill - The current one-year extension of the Farm Bill has now expired. While some programs are funded through the end of the calendar year, there are several provisions that will likely lead to disruptions. More information to come.
Referenced & Additional Links:
DOI Shutdown Plan
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