SANTA FE, N.M. – Congressman Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), along with U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) and Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.), called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide robust oversight of the New Mexico Farm Service Agency’s management of the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program. In a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, the members of New Mexico’s congressional delegation raised concerns about NM FSA’s actions to limit Rio Arriba farmers and ranchers’ access to disaster assistance.
In August, the USDA National Appeals Division affirmed recent decisions that found that FSA erred by improperly adjusting county expected yields retroactively to reduce payouts for disaster relief. Instead of rectifying its error and paying the local farmers and ranchers what they were promised, the agency has taken further steps to reduce relief by deeming drought conditions on farms and ranches irrigated by acequias ineligible under NAP. These decisions shortchange New Mexico’s farmers who have sustainably grown crops and managed water via acequias for centuries.
“New Mexico farmers and ranchers are facing a difficult year due to COVID-19 and drought conditions across the state. Most of the state has been designated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) as experiencing either severe or extreme drought. Given these circumstances, it is particularly concerning that New Mexico FSA has been communicating to farmers and ranchers that drought is not an eligible cause of loss on irrigated lands for disaster assistance programs like NAP,” wrote the Members of Congress.
“As you are aware, New Mexico FSA’s mismanagement of the NAP program in recent years was the subject of a USDA National Appeals Division Director Review Determination on August 4, 2020, in which NAD Director Frank Wood reminded FSA that it ‘must comply with its regulations and the procedures specified in its handbook Provisions.’ We are deeply concerned that New Mexico FSA appears to be circumventing its own rules at the expense of New Mexico’s farmers and ranchers…We respectfully request that you clarify FSA’s position on drought as a cause of loss on acequia irrigated lands and immediately provide oversight over NM FSA’s mismanagement of the NAP program,” they continued.
The full text of the letter is below:
Dear Secretary Perdue,
We are writing to express our concern for New Mexico’s farmers and ranchers and their access to the critical federal assistance programs they depend on during times of drought.
We have been made aware of a recent change in policy implementation from the New Mexico Farm Service Agency (NM FSA) that drought conditions on farms and ranches irrigated by acequias will no longer be considered an eligible cause of loss under the
Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP).
1 This decision is inconsistent with how the program has been administered in previous years, and it represents an egregious misunderstanding of drought conditions and how they impact crop yields.
Acequias are centuriesold irrigation structures that are unique and still in use today in rural communities across New Mexico. Each acequia is governed by a board made up of private landowners, known as a community ditch association. These community ditches are the lifeblood that enables New Mexicans to tend to their crops, care for their animals, carry on valued traditions, and make their living. During times of drought, these community systems govern how much water each member is allocated and, in some cases, allowable uses.
This form of communal governance allows New Mexican communities to navigate and ensure water rights in times of scarcity or extreme scarcity—water rights that go back hundreds of years for most acequias. While the approach to water distribution varies greatly de pending on the acequia and its bylaws, commonly the parciante or mayordomo who manages the acequia divides water between members.
This means that water may not be guaranteed to the individual users, which can greatly impact these farmers’ and ranchers’ ability to produce crops and sustain their farms. New Mexico farmers and ranchers are facing a difficult year due to COVID-19 and drought conditions across the state. Most of the state has been designated by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) as experiencing either severe or extreme drought.
Given these circumstances, it is particularly concerning that New Mexico FSA has been communicating to farmers and ranchers that drought is not an eligible cause of loss on irrigated lands for disaster assistance programs like NAP.
(White, Michael S. letter to Paula Garcia. September 4th, 2020. FSA Response to New Mexico Acequia Assoc i a t i o n , https://lasacequias.org/wpcontent/uploads/2017/10/Go vernance-Handbook-Rev-2014.pdf 3 https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap /StateDroughtMonitor.aspx? West)
As you are aware, New Mexico FSA’s mismanagement of the NAP program in recent years was the subject of a USDA National Appeals Division (NAD) Director Review Determination on August 4, 2020, in which NAD Director Frank Wood re minded FSA that it “must comply with its regulations and the procedures specified in its handbook provisions.” We are deeply concerned that New Mexico FSA appears to be circumventing its own rules at the expense of New Mexico’s farmers and ranchers. Most recently, it has come to our attention that NM FSA has been misrepresenting the NAD Director’s ruling to local farmers and ranchers, including by suggesting that FSA made a decision not to recoup overpayments out of generosity, when in fact the NAD Director’s determination explicitly prohibits recoupment.
We respectfully request that you clarify FSA’s position on drought as a cause of loss on acequia irrigated lands and immediately provide oversight over NM FSA’s mismanagement of the NAP program. Additionally, we urge you to implement the NAD Director Review decisions, dated July 16th, 2020 and October 8th, 2020, 5 and any subsequent clarifications from the NAD Director. Lastly, we urge USDA to recognize the NAD Director’s determination that FSA’s adjustment of the county-expected yields was improper and to ensure that farmers and ranchers who were adversely impacted by this case are paid at the original certified and agreed upon T-yields, which for Rio Arriba County was based on a county-expected yield of 4.18 tons/acre, either as compensation from their NAP contracts or through Equitable Relief.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this issue.