Agriculture Sec Rollins signs disaster declaration assisting 17 PA counties impacted by freeze

Farmers from over a dozen counties in Pennsylvania impacted by freeze events last month will be able to receive assistance from the federal government.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins met with U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan, R-8th District, and other agriculture leaders in Pennsylvania on Tuesday to announce that she has signed a disaster declaration for 17 counties impacted by damages and losses caused by below-freezing temperatures occurring between April 19 through April 21.

“Fighting for our farmers means being there for them when Mother Nature hits, today we are showing that USDA stands with Pennsylvania agriculture — and we will continue working to ensure producers have the support they need to recover and move forward,” said Rollins. “This designation is a first step forward to help agricultural producers access emergency loans and programs in the aftermath of freezing temperatures.””

This designation allows USDA’s Farm Service Agency, or FSA, to extend emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters through emergency loans.

According to the USDA, these emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs, including “the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation, or to refinance certain debts.”

The agency will review the loans based on the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability.

Producers in the following counties will have until Jan. 26, 2027, to apply for these emergency loans: Adams, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Luzerne, Lycoming, Monroe, Montour, Northumberland, Perry, Susquehanna, Wayne, Wyoming, and York counties.

For FSA and Natural Resources Conservation Service, or NRCS, programs, producers should contact their local USDA Service Center. For assistance with a crop insurance claim, producers and landowners should contact their crop insurance agent.

USDA added that it is reviewing disaster designations for the remaining counties in Pennsylvania and gathering data.

Bresnahan, who was on hand for this announcement, said he was grateful to Rollins for helping out those farmers.

“Our farmers cannot control the weather, but Washington can make sure they are not left to shoulder these losses alone,” said Bresnahan. “The April freeze devastated orchards and specialty crop producers across Pennsylvania, and this declaration will help get critical relief to the growers who keep our communities fed and our agricultural economy strong.”

While the announcement was made on Tuesday, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle in Pennsylvania had been calling for the federal government to provide assistance to those farmers.

On May 8, Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration sent a letter to Rollins asking for the federal government’s support.

“Right now, Pennsylvania farmers are facing catastrophic losses through no fault of their own, and they deserve a federal government that moves with urgency,” Shapiro said in a press release. “I’ve called on USDA to cut through delays, expedite the disaster declaration, and ensure farmers receive the assistance and crop insurance support they need to recover and keep their operations moving forward.”

In that May 8 press release, Pennsylvania’s Department of Agriculture said early estimates indicated the commonwealth’s specialty crop industry could face between $150 million and $200 million in economic losses as a result of the freeze.

Last week, U.S. Sens. John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Dave McCormick, R-Pa., along with 11 U.S. House members in the state backed Shapiro’s call and authored a letter urging the federal government to step in.

In addition to emergency loans, USDA said they have other programs to support farmers and ranchers as they recover from disasters, including freezes.

Additional USDA disaster assistance information can be found on farmers.gov, including USDA resources specifically for producers impacted by winter weather.