Q: What is Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers?
A: For over 40 years, the Trade Adjustment Assistance program has provided assistance to individuals who lose their manufacturing jobs due to imports. But until this year, Trade Adjustment Assistance was not available to farmers. As a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, which handles trade policy, I pushed last year for expansion of Trade Adjustment Assistance to cover agricultural producers, and such a program became law with the enactment of the Trade Act of 2002. With Trade Adjustment Assistance now available to farmers, I’m pleased to have worked to bring equity to the system. Under the new Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers program, up to $90 million is authorized for each fiscal year 2003 through 2007 to offer technical assistance and cash benefits to agricultural producers who qualify under the program. The USDA launched the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers program in August, announcing it would begin to accept petitions for assistance immediately. I’m a strong advocate for expanding trade opportunities that help grow the economy and create high-paying jobs. At the same time, if imported agricultural products contribute importantly to declines in prices of U.S. commodities, America’s farmers should, like other U.S. workers, have trade adjustment assistance available to them.
Q: Who qualifies for assistance under the federal program?
A: U.S. agricultural, livestock, and aquaculture producers who can demonstrate that increased imports have contributed significantly to a 20-percent or more price drop compared to the average price over five preceding market years can qualify for Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers. Producers must file a petition with the Foreign Agricultural Service at USDA to establish eligibility and show complete marketing year price information. The Economic Research Service will analyze the information to determine if national average prices for the marketing year in question are equal to or less than 80 percent of the average prices in the past five marketing years. Increases in imports of that commodity must have contributed importantly to the decline in price. Once a group receives certification for eligibility, producers have 90 days to contact the Farm Service Agency to apply for assistance. For more information, farmers may contact their local Farm Service Agency offices. The petition form and application also are located on-line at http://www.fas.usda.gov/itp/taa/resource.htm. From my committee assignments on the Senate Finance, Judiciary and Agriculture Committees, I'll continue my efforts to ensure family farmers get a fair shake in the marketplace. Whether it's fighting unreasonable tax laws or IRS rulings regarding farmer-owned cooperatives, conducting rigorous oversight over enforcement of the nation's antitrust laws as they apply to concentration in American agriculture or seeing to it that farmers, like workers, are eligible for trade adjustment assistance, I’m committed to giving family farmers a voice that can be heard loud and clear when it comes to matters of public policy that affect their livelihood and way of life.