Apr 28, 2025, 11:44 by Kathleen M. Dutro, INFB Marketing Team
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is issuing up to $10 billion directly to eligible agricultural producers through the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program (ECAP) for the 2024 crop year.
Administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency, the economic relief payments are based on the amount of eligible planted and prevented-planted crop acres for the 2024 crop year. Essentially, the per-acre payments were set as either a percentage of estimated losses per acre for each commodity or as a percentage of the commodity’s reference price, explained Betty Resnic, American Farm Bureau Federation economist, writing in the March 27 edition of AFBF’s Market Intel.
FSA began sending pre-filled applications to producers who submitted acreage reports to FSA for 2024 eligible ECAP commodities soon after the signup period opened on March 19. Producers must apply to receive payments, but they do not have to wait for their pre-filled ECAP application to apply.
Producers can visit fsa.usda.gov/ecap to apply using a login.gov account or contact their local FSA office to request an application. The signup period began March 19 and runs through Friday, Aug. 15.
Additionally, the ECAP website provides several helpful resources, including information on:
In addition to the application, farmers must have four other forms on file with FSA in order to be eligible for payment. If farmers have participated in past FSA programs, most of these forms will probably already be on file, but full details are available on the ECAP website.
According to AFBF, ECAP payments are capped at $125,000 for farmers and ranchers with less than 75% of their average gross income across tax years 2021, 2022 and 2023 derived from farming, ranching or forestry. The cap is increased to $250,000 for farmers who file form CCC-943, with 75% or more of their average gross income derived from farming, ranching or forestry. There is no traditional adjusted gross income maximum to receive aid, and economic aid payment limitations are unrelated to any other program’s payment limits.
The program was included in the American Relief Act of 2025, which was passed by Congress and signed by then-President Biden in December 2024. The Trump administration met the 90-day legislative deadline to initiate the program, with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins making the announcement in March.
“We are very pleased that lawmakers recognized the challenges facing rural America and included aid for farmers in the December continuing resolution,” said Brantley Seifers, INFB national affairs director. “We urge USDA to move quickly to distribute the remaining aid approved by Congress, including support for farmers hit hard by natural disasters.”
If you have questions, reach out to your local FSA office or Seifers at bseifers@infb.org.
