TIFTON, Ga. - The Georgia Peanut Commission expressed concern that despite dramatic reforms to the payment limitation rule in the 2008 Farm Bill, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has proposed more extensive reforms without the review of Congress. These changes are included in an interim rule published by the Commodity Credit Corporation regarding payment limits for farmers.

The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) published an interim rule on December 29, 2008 (73 FR 79267-79284), revising rules about payment limitation and payment eligibility for Farm Programs as required by the 2008 Farm Bill. The Farm Bill provided new eligibility requirements based on annual income, sources of income, and type of entity.

The commission submitted comments to USDA in response to the proposed regulation along with other farm organizations interested in payment limit rules. The commission believes the interim regulations go beyond the farm bill reforms and in some cases are contrary to the intent of Congress.

The commission is concerned with the following:
1. Substantial new requirements for producers to be considered to be actively engaged in farming – none of which is mandated by the statute;
2. unnecessary restrictions on the new spousal attribution rules;
3. unreasonable constraints on financing;
4. new actively engaged requirements for members of farming entities that are either confusing or are contrary to normal farming operations; and
5. expanding the “actively engaged” component of the statute to make it applicable to participation in certain conservation programs, even though this requirement is not included in the law.

In recently held county meetings throughout Georgia, the commission heard firsthand the concerns of producers and how these new changes would impact their farm operations in 2009.

“ The proposed changes will create uncertainty among farmers,” says Armond Morris, chairman of the Georgia Peanut Commission. “The proposed changes may have an impact on farmers being able to obtain financing for the 2009 crop.”