Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff is pressing the Biden Administration to help Georgia farmers impacted by Tropical Storm Debby.
Today, Sens. Ossoff and Reverend Raphael Warnock, alongside Congressmen Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA-01) and Austin Scott (R-GA-08), launched a bipartisan, bicameral inquiry with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ensure that Georgia farmers and growers in counties affected by Tropical Storm Debby get the relief and assistance they deserve.
“Tropical Storm Debby hit South Georgia with devastating rain and wind that caused widespread harm to crops and property. Over four days, farms sustained flooding and wind damage that will undoubtedly result in serious financial losses for many Georgia growers,” the group wrote to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. “We implore you to take every possible step to help these growers recover from this storm by ensuring they receive the maximum support possible under the insurance they have purchased from the Federal Crop Insurance Program.”
According to a 2023 report by the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, a “tropical storm county” is triggered when a tropical storm corridor causes “precipitation in the county equals or exceeds 6 inches during a four-day interval.”
As part of their inquiry, the Members highlighted 3 Georgia counties — Coffee, Atkinson, and Berrien — that are currently ineligible for relief but whose farmers reported significant damage.
“While USDA indicated that Echols and Ware counties were triggered as secondary counties for Hurricane Debby, USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) did not include Ware County, Echols County, or Lanier County as counties with a primary trigger,” the group continued. “This has left the adjacent counties — Coffee, Atkinson, and Berrien — without payments following this devastating storm.”
Sen. Ossoff continues working to support Georgia farmers and growers.
Earlier this month, Sen. Ossoff launched a push to pass the Crop Insurance for Future Farmers Act of 2023, legislation he co-sponsored to strengthen access to crop insurance and to lower premiums for beginning farmers.
In August, Sen. Ossoff and Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02) introduced the Protecting Our Produce Act to boost resources and support for Georgia specialty crop growers facing unfairly priced imports.
Sen. Ossoff joined as the Senate co-lead of the bipartisan Temperature Endorsement for Multi-Peril Policies (TEMP) Act, a bill introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) that would direct the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) to study the development of insurance policies for losses from frost and cold-weather events.
In May, following Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan, bicameral push, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and USDA established a Seasonal and Perishable Agricultural Products Advisory Committee to help ensure Georgia farmers are at the table to address unfair trade practices by Mexican importers.
Click here to read the bipartisan, bicameral letter to USDA Secretary Vilsack.
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