Gov. J.B. Pritzker urges U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to declare disaster for rain-soaked Illinois farmers
Because of flooding throughout Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker wrote a letter to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue Wednesday urging Perdue to issue a disaster declaration for farmers in the state.
In a news release today about the letter, Pritzker said: “For months, our state has been battling historic flooding, causing untold damage to homes, businesses, and farms across Illinois, for our farmers, this has meant delaying, reducing, or even eliminating planting, hurting a core state industry and impacting working families across Illinois…While the state will continue to do everything we can to help, a Secretarial Disaster Declaration will provide much needed aid to impacted farmers in Illinois and I am hopeful the USDA will make this declaration.”
The USDA’s Farm Services Agency recently held a state emergency board meeting that recommended all 102 Illinois counties be declared an agriculture disaster. The request from the state board has to be reviewed by USDA staff before it can be approved by Perdue. The declaration would provide access to federal resources for farmers and other agricultural businesses that have experienced and unprecedented loss during the spring planting season.
Congressional leaders from Illinois also sent a letter to Perdue Wednesday supporting Pritzker’s request. According to a news release sent by U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin’s office, the letter was signed by him, as well as Sen. Tammy Duckworth, and Reps.
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In a news release today about the letter, Pritzker said: “For months, our state has been battling historic flooding, causing untold damage to homes, businesses, and farms across Illinois, for our farmers, this has meant delaying, reducing, or even eliminating planting, hurting a core state industry and impacting working families across Illinois…While the state will continue to do everything we can to help, a Secretarial Disaster Declaration will provide much needed aid to impacted farmers in Illinois and I am hopeful the USDA will make this declaration.”
The USDA’s Farm Services Agency recently held a state emergency board meeting that recommended all 102 Illinois counties be declared an agriculture disaster. The request from the state board has to be reviewed by USDA staff before it can be approved by Perdue. The declaration would provide access to federal resources for farmers and other agricultural businesses that have experienced and unprecedented loss during the spring planting season.
Congressional leaders from Illinois also sent a letter to Perdue Wednesday supporting Pritzker’s request. According to a news release sent by U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin’s office, the letter was signed by him, as well as Sen. Tammy Duckworth, and Reps.
Click Here to read more.