{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://hayes.house.gov/press-releases?ID=3B77DB60-AF07-481E-A45D-70F63087F6F0", "Hayes Introduces the Helping America's Farmers Act to Assist Farmers Impacted by Disasters", "2024-12-11", "2024", "2024-12", "Democrat", "House", "CT", "Jahana Hayes", "H001081", "hayes.house.gov", "hayes", "https://hayes.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Congresswoman Jahana Hayes (CT-05) introduced the Helping America\u2019s Famers Act, legislation which would authorize the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide up to $10 billion in zero-interest loans to assist farms impacted by disasters.\n\nWith this funding, USDA would be able to more quickly provide financial support to farmers in need in states where Federal Crop Insurance is unavailable or out of reach. Recipient farmers could use funds to account for crop or livestock losses, maintain employees, and make rent or mortgage payments.\n\n\u201cOver the last several years, farmers in my district and across the country have more frequently experienced extreme weather events from unseasonable cold snaps to record flooding. Despite the growing need for federal disaster assistance for small farmers, USDA often lacks the funding necessary for recovery,\u201d said Congresswoman Hayes. \u201cThe Helping America\u2019s Farmers Act would provide USDA with the resources needed to quickly assist farmers in the aftermath of a disaster. This common sense approach allows farmers to focus on rebuilding without the fear of falling further into debt.\u201d\n\nIn addition to providing $10 billion to USDA to assist farmers directly, the Helping America\u2019s Farmers Act directs the Secretary of Agriculture to prioritize states participating in USDA Agricultural Management Assistance (AMA), which helps agricultural producers manage financial risk through diversification, marketing, or natural resource conservation practices.\n\nAgricultural Management Assistance is available in 16 states where participation in the Federal Crop Insurance Program is historically low: Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming.\n\nSince 2023, farmers in Connecticut have experienced crop losses in excess of $10.5 million due to extreme weather events. As a member of the Committee on Agriculture, Congresswoman Hayes has worked extensively to increase the federal safety net for farmers and producers.\n\nIn June 2024, Congresswoman Hayes introduced the Save Our Small Farms Act to expand federal crop insurance by allowing small farms to better access crop insurance policies.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T22:13:55Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://hayes.house.gov/press-releases?ID=3B77DB60-AF07-481E-A45D-70F63087F6F0"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.031099982559681, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}