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Farm Support Program draws 15,000 Wisconsin farmer applications so far

Wisconsin’s ag secretary says applications for the state’s third round of farm support payments continue to come in.

Randy Romanski tells Brownfield the need for assistance following the pandemic is still there. “We have so far seen over 15,000 farmers apply for the Farm Support Program, so that’s a strong start to the program. It’s also a clear indication that there continue to be challenges that farmers are facing in Wisconsin.”

Romanski says time is running out, and interested farmers have until 4:30 pm on Monday, November 29^th. “All eligible farmers have gotten a letter from the Department of Revenue with information about the program and a letter I-D. if you haven’t applied yet and you got that letter, find the letter, get the letter I-D and you can still apply at revenue.wi.gov.”

Romanski says farmers that did not get the letter and believe they are eligible should also contact the Department of Revenue.

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers used 50-million in CARES Act funding for direct payments to farmers in the summer of 2020 and allocated another 15 million for local food security efforts.  A second 50-million was assigned for farmer support in the fall of 2020.  This third round of assistance is from American Rescue Act dollars, and Romanski says the administration intends to distribute the funds to farmers before the end of the year.