Application deadline for NAP is March 15

Producers should be aware that March 15 is the application closing date for certain crops under the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program.

NAP is a program designed to reduce financial losses that occur when natural disasters cause a loss of production of eligible crops. Crops eligible for NAP benefits are limited to those not insurable in the county and are produced for food or fiber.

March 15 is the final date to pay the applicable service fee and obtain NAP coverage for crops such as forage-type sorghums and double-cropped coarse grains like grain sorghum, sunflowers and soybeans.

A variety of vegetables and melon fruits are also eligible for NAP coverage.

The administrative service fee is $250 per crop per county not to exceed $750 per producer per county and a $1,875 maximum fee for multi-county producers.

Interested producers must pay the fee and file an application for coverage, by this established application closing deadline.

This coverage entitles eligible producers to a payment of 55 percent of an average market price for the commodity if a natural disaster caused a 50 percent production loss or greater of the crop.

In the event that a producer does suffer a loss on their particular crop, a form CCC-576, Notice of Loss, must be filed with FSA within 15 calendar days after the disaster occurrence, or the date the loss becomes apparent to the producer.

Producers are limited to $100,000 in benefits per person per crop year, they must certify crop acres by applicable deadlines, maintain production evidence for three years, meet average adjusted gross income provisions, and comply with conservation compliance provisions in order to be eligible.

A new standard for this year requires producers to purchase NAP policies for those crops that contribute 5 percent or more of the total expected value of all crops grown by the producer if they wish to receive benefit eligibility under the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Program, which provides individual crop FSA based disaster loss protection.

Bill Harmon is executive director of the Marion County FSA office.

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