USDA Designates 47 North Dakota Counties as Primary Natural Disaster Areas

Emergency Support to Producers in Surrounding Counties/Border States Also Available

WASHINGTON, Nov. 14, 2019 — Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue designated 47 North Dakota counties as primary natural disaster areas. Producers who suffered losses due to recent weather events may be eligible for U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) emergency loans.

These natural disaster designations allow FSA to extend much-needed emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters. Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation or the refinance of certain debts.

Excessive Rain and Snow, Flooding

Producers in Cass, Eddy, Emmons, Foster, Grand Forks, Kidder, LaMoure, McHenry, Pembina, Stutsman, Traill, Walsh, and Wells counties, who suffered losses due to excessive rain, excessive snow, and flooding that has occurred since Jan. 1, 2019, are eligible to apply for emergency loans.

Producers in the contiguous North Dakota counties of Barnes, Benson, Bottineau, Burleigh, Cavalier, Dickey, Griggs, Logan, McIntosh, McLean, Morton, Nelson, Pierce, Ramsey, Ransom, Renville, Richland, Sheridan, Sioux, Steele, and Ward, along with Clay, Kittson, Marshall, Norman, and Polk counties in Minnesota, and Campbell and Corson counties in South Dakota, are also eligible to apply for emergency loans.

Excessive Rain

Producers in Billings, Dunn, Golden Valley, McKenzie, and Stark counties who suffered losses due to excessive rain that occurred from July 1 through Oct. 22, 2019, are eligible to apply for emergency loans.

Producers in the contiguous North Dakota counties of Grant, Hettinger, McLean, Mercer, Morton, Mountrail, Slope, and Williams, along with Fallon, Richland, Roosevelt, and Wibaux counties in Montana, are also eligible to apply for emergency loans.

Excessive Rain and Snow

Producers in Adams, Benson, Bottineau, Bowman, Burke, Cavalier, Divide, Grant, Griggs, Hettinger, McIntosh, Mercer, Morton, Mountrail, Nelson, Oliver, Pierce, Ramsey, Ransom, Renville, Rolette, Sargent, Sheridan, Sioux, Slope, Steele, Towner, Ward, and Williams, who suffered losses due to excessive rain and snow that has occurred since Aug. 1, 2019, are eligible to apply for emergency loans.

Producers in the contiguous North Dakota counties of Barnes, Billings, Burleigh, Cass, Dickey, Dunn, Eddy, Emmons, Foster, Golden Valley, Grand Forks, Kidder, LaMoure, Logan, McHenry, McKenzie, McLean, Pembina, Richland, Stark, Stutsman, Traill, Walsh, and Wells, along with Fallon, Richland, Roosevelt, and Sheridan counties in Montana, and Brown, Campbell, Corson, Harding, McPherson, Marshall, Perkins, and Roberts counties in South Dakota, are also eligible to apply for emergency loans.

The deadline to apply for these emergency loans is July 6, 2020.

FSA will review the loans based on the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability.

FSA has a variety of additional programs to help farmers recover from the impacts of this disaster. FSA programs that do not require a disaster declaration include: Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program; Emergency Conservation Program; Livestock Forage Disaster Program; Livestock Indemnity Program; Operating and Farm Ownership Loans; and the Tree Assistance Program.

Farmers may contact their local USDA service center for further information on eligibility requirements and application procedures for these and other programs. Additional information is also available online at farmers.gov/recover.