News Release 11-18-2003 |
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SIGNUP UNDER WAY FOR LANDMARK FARM INSURANCE PROGRAM Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass is encouraging West Virginia’s farmers to consider enrolling in a new insurance program that aims to guarantee farm income, following a summit of farm and insurance officials at the Guthrie Agriculture Center in mid-November. The Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) Lite Program is backed by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency (USDA-RMA) and is available in a dozen northeastern states traditionally considered to have been underserved by USDA crop insurance programs. “We all face some level of risk, but the livelihood of farmers is at the mercy of factors beyond human control,” said Commissioner Douglass. “Too little moisture, or as we experienced this year, too much moisture, can have severe consequences on the finances of our farm families. This program provides insurance against the bad years.” According to Billy Burke, Risk Management Coordinator for the Department of Agriculture, this program is a powerful tool for West Virginia farmers. “We are in the process of training all the point people in the agriculture offices so that they can answer the basic questions,” said Burke. “The insurance agents are also becoming familiar with the program so that they can begin writing the policies.” Burke added that the program will be sold only through private insurance companies – not through any government agencies – and that varying levels of coverage will be available at different premium rates. He also noted that signup for crop year 2004 must be completed by the end of January, but that registration would be ongoing for subsequent crop years. The program has been designed to be a “streamlined, whole-farm revenue protection program that can be used as a stand-alone coverage, or in addition to other individual crop insurance policies,” according to Gene Gantz, who represented USDA-RMA at the Guthrie meeting. “The premium cost will vary depending on what their revenue history is, depending on what levels of coverage they buy, what rates of payment they choose and the amount of diversification they have in their farming operation,” he said. “But what they will generally find is that this is the lowest cost revenue-type coverage protection that they can get.” Federally backed insurance programs typically have catered to Midwestern row crops rather than the livestock-intensive agriculture seen in the Mountain State. This new program is a monumental step toward protecting agriculture outside the grain belt. “Our crop mix did not correspond to the crop insurance products
offered by the Risk Management Agency,” said Tom McConnell,
with the West Virginia University Extension Service. “So what
this will do is offer 20,000 farmers the opportunity to insure the
adjusted gross revenue. Think how easy that is – there’s
no yields to chase down. All you do is take specific lines off the
Schedule F of your 1040 income tax forms and have a five-year history
and you can insure your adjusted gross income.” |
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