Bill to Help Virginia farmers With Drought Insurance Withers in Committee

RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia farmers will go another year without state aid to cover increasing costs of drought insurance after a Senate finance committee did not take up the legislation before crossover, or include assistance in the budget.

Sen. Timmy French, R-Shenandoah, introduced Senate Bill 1151 to establish the Pasture, Rangeland and Forage Insurance Premium Assistance Program Fund.

The bill would assist Virginian farmers enrolled in the federal Rainfall Index Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage insurance program, known as PRF insurance to receive up to $500 compensation for their annual premium, on a first-come first-served basis.

It had full support from the Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee, but did not survive the appropriations committee.

French spoke for the bill at the Rural Affairs subcommittee on Jan. 23.

There was a 27% increase in farmers’ use of PRF insurance from 2023-2024, according to French.

“It’s still a fraction of farmers in Virginia,” French said. “We think this is a way to help our farmers realize what’s there for them.”

Over 5,000 farms were lost in the last five years in Virginia, according to Jim Riddell of the Virginia Cattlemen’s Association during the subcommittee meeting.

“We have drought more times than we don’t,” Riddell said. “Water is the most limiting factor in agriculture.”

Sometimes water is too much. Virginia farmers suffered at least an estimated $160 million in agricultural damages from the rapid rainfall dumped by Hurricane Helene, according to Virginia Cooperative Extension Agents. 

The program is a route to help support farmers, according to Joseph Guthrie, commissioner of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. It is important agriculture remain a stable industry that helps provide “a safe and plentiful food supply for all Virginians and Americans,” he said.

The program intended to help build resiliency within agriculture at a lower price, according to Guthrie.

“We think that one good way of doing that is to help introduce even more farmers to this, I think, really good insurance program being provided by our friends at USDA and to get them to try it at kind of a reduced price and see how well it works for them,” Guthrie said.

The insurance is specific to drought, according to Guthrie.

“So that if there is a shortfall in rain, and the land owner has gotten the insurance coverage they can be paid an indemnity insurance payment for that,” Guthrie said.

Those who participated in the program, if the bill had passed, would have been reimbursed 50% of their annual Pasture, Rangeland and Forage insurance premium, up to $500.

The bill was originally specific to livestock farmers. Forage providers haven’t used insurance like PRF as much as crop growers, according to Guthrie. However, the bill was amended on Jan. 28 to include anyone who owns or operates an agricultural operation.

“The idea behind this law is to help us to provide more resiliency against drought but also to introduce our forage growers to this program and to make it more attractive to them,” Guthrie said.

Participants would have to be enrolled in PRF insurance, provide proof of annual payment and proof that soil samples were collected per the recommendations from the Virginia Cooperative Extension, within the last three years.

A special fund would have been created for the program, according to the bill. Any funds allotted for the program, including any gifts, donations and grants would be put into the State Treasury and assigned to the fund.

It is unclear whether the bill will be introduced again in the next legislative session, according to Guthrie.

“Time will tell whether or not eventually this comes to fruition,” Guthrie said. “But at the very least, we do want to make more producers aware there’s really good insurance being provided by USDA and as a way to make farms, and particularly cattle farms, in Virginia more resilient against drought.”

By Cora Perkins
VCU Capital News Service

Capital News Service is a program of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Robertson School of Media and Culture. Students in the program provide state government coverage for a variety of media outlets in Virginia.