The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced that dairy producers and the public have until Dec. 26, 2007, to comment on a proposed rule concerning the new Dairy Disaster Assistance Program III (DDAP-III). USDA published the proposed rule in the Federal Register today.
The proposal sets forth rules governing how this program will be administered. Comments may be made on proposed eligibility requirements, proof of production history, loss determinations, payment rates, payment rate calculations, appeals and other program provisions. Also, the proposal outlines the differences between this program and similar dairy disaster assistance programs carried out by USDA in recent years.
Comments should include the volume, date and page number of the issue of the Federal Register. The public can comment by: E-mail to: Danielle.Cooke@wdc.usda.gov; Fax: (202) 690-1536; Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
The “U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007” (2007 Act), signed into law on May 25, 2007, by President George W. Bush, authorizes DDAP-III. DDAP-III provides $16 million in benefits to dairy producers for dairy production losses that occurred between Jan. 1, 2005, and Feb. 28, 2007. USDA administered two dairy disaster assistance programs in recent years; however, the programs were implemented in some Gulf and Southeast states only. Unlike other disaster programs authorized by the 2007 Act, Congress did not exempt DDAP-III from the rulemaking process.