Farmer Bridge Assistance Sign-Up Underway

Sign-up for the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) program began on February 23 at local Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices and will continue until April 17. A total of $12 billion was allocated for the FBA program to provide economic assistance payments to producers of certain crops to offset low prices and poor profit margins for the 2025 crop year, as well as the market price impacts from tariffs on export markets for certain crops in the past year. Of that total, $11 billion of the payments will be paid to producers of traditional farm program Title I crops, which includes corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, and rice. The remaining $1 billion will be held back for economic assistance for specialty crop producers.
FBA Sign-up Procedures
 
Eligible crop producers will receive a pre-filled FBA application form listing the eligible 2025 crop acres, based on the crop acreage report that was submitted to the FSA office. Producers only need to complete one FBA application for all eligible crops, regardless of the farm location in any county or State. Farmers can receive their FBA application form either in person at their local FSA office, or they can receive their FBA application using the FSA online system. Farmers with an existing FSA online account are able to sign-up for potential FBA payments by accessing their existing FSA account. Other farmers will also be able to set up a new online account prior to enrolling in the FBA program. For more information on the FSA online accounts, farmers should go to the following website: www.farmers.gov/account.
Once producers receive the FBA application, they should verify that the data in the application is correct and the sign the form. The completed FBA application may be submitted to FSA using the FSA online system, via email or fax, or in person at local FSA offices. In addition to submitting the FBA application on a timely basis, producers must have completed several other forms required by FSA. Most farmers that routinely receive farm program payments will likely already have these payments on file at local FSA offices. Following are the required FSA forms in order to receive FBA and other FSA payments:
• AD-1026 -Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification.
• Form CCC-941 - Average Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) Certification and Consent to Disclosure of Tax Information.
• Form CCC-901 - Member Information for Legal Entities.
• Form CCC-9021 (if applicable) - Farm Operating Plan for an Individual.
• Form CCC-941 (if applicable) - Farm Operating Plan for an Entity.
• SF-3881 - Miscellaneous Payment Form (Direct Deposit authorization).
 
FBA Payment Rates for Various Eligible Crops
• Corn - $44.36 per acre
v Soybeans - $30.88 per acre
• Wheat - $39.35 per acre
• Oats - $81.75 per acre
• Barley - $20.51 per acre
• Peas - $19.60 per acre
• Sorghum - $48.11 per acre
• Cotton - $117.35 per acre
• Rice - $132.89 per acre
• Peanuts - $55.65per acre
FBA payment rates were also announced for canola, chickpeas, flax, mustard, safflower, sesame, and sunflower.
 
How FBA Payments were Calculated
FBA payments will be based on the 2025 planted acres of eligible crops, as reported to local Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices on or before December 19, 2025. For double-crop acres, both the first crop and subsequent crop are eligible for FBA payments (for example peas followed by soybeans); however, any prevent plant acres in 2025 are not eligible for the FBA payments The payment amounts for each crop were based on the national average yield times the projected 2025-26 market year average (MYA) price in the December 9, 2025 WASDE report, minus the 2025 average production cost for a commodity, based on USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) data. The MYA prices in the December WASDE report included $4.00 per bushel for corn, $10.50 per bushel for soybeans, and $5.50 per bushel for wheat.

Payment Limits for FBA Payments
The payment limit for the FBA payments will be $155,000 per eligible person or legal entity. There will not be higher payment limits based on having 75 percent of taxable income received from farming enterprises, similar to some previous FSA programs. Entities such as corporations, LLC’s, S corporations, and trusts will be limited to one payment limit of $155,000. Any person or legal entity with an adjusted gross income (AGI) exceeding $900,000, based on FSA criteria, will not be eligible to receive any FBA payments.
Following are examples of the estimated acres required to reach the $155,000 payment limit with various crop mixtures of corn, soybeans, and wheat:
· 100% Corn ($44.36/A.) = 3,494 acres
· 100% Soybeans ($30.88/A.) = 5,019 acres
· 100% Wheat ($39.35/A.) = 3,939 acres
· 2/3 Corn; 1/3 Soybeans (ave. $39.86/A.) = 3,889 acres
· 1/2 Corn; 1/2 Soybeans (ave. $37.62/A.) = 4,120 acres
· 1/3 Corn; 1/3 Soybeans; 1/3 Wheat (ave. $38.20/A.) = 4,058 acres
 
Details on the ASCF Program for Specialty Crops
An additional $1 billion has been allocated for the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers (ASCF) program, which will provide payments to a wide range of crops not covered by the FBA program. This includes most fruits, vegetables, nuts, horticulture crops, etc. Producers of dry edible beans and peas are eligible for FBA payments and should complete out a FBA application, as they will not be eligible for ASCF payments. There will also be separate payments for sugar beet and sugarcane producers. Similar to FBA payments, ASCF payments will be based on 2025 planted acres of various specialty and sugar crops. Specialty crop acreage must be reported to local FSA offices by March 13, 2026. Following that, payment rates and sign-up details will be announced for the ASCF program.
 
More Information on the FBA Program or the ASCF Program
Farmers that submitted their application for the FBA program shortly after February 23 reported receiving their FBA payments within a few days. Farmers with specific questions on the application process for either the FBA program or the ASCF program, or regarding payment procedures, should contact their local FSA office. For more information on the FBA program requirements, payment rates, payment limits, etc., as well as updates on the ASCF program, farmers can go to the USDA FBA website at: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/resources/programs/farmer-bridge-assistance-fba-program
For additional information contact Kent Thiesse, Farm Management Analyst, Green Solutions Group Phone --- (507) 381-7960; E-mail --- [email protected]