WiserEarth Suggestions

The Farm Service Agency (FSA) administers and manages farm commodity, credit, conservation, disaster and loan programs as laid out by Congress through a network of federal, state and county offices.

These programs are designed to improve the economic stability of the agricultural industry and to help farmers adjust production to meet demand. Economically, the desired result of these programs is a steady price range for agricultural commodities for both farmers and consumers.

In the Eisenhower administration, the Congress split the functions of the Triple A committees, creating the state and county office system to take care of administrative functions and kept the farmer county committee to oversee implementation of federal programs in their county.

State and county offices directly administer FSA programs. These offices certify farmers for farm programs and pay out farm subsidies and disaster payments. Currently, there are 2,346 FSA county offices in the continental states. FSA also has offices in Hawaii, and a few American territories.

More than 8,000 farmer county committee members serve in FSA county offices nationwide. Committee members are the local authorities responsible for fairly and equitably resolving local issues while remaining dually and directly accountable to the Secretary of Agriculture and local producers though the elective process. They operate within official regulations designed to carry out Federal laws and provide a necessary and important voice in Federal decisions affecting their counties and communities.

Committee members make decisions affecting which FSA programs are implemented county-wide, the establishment of allotment and yields, commodity price support loans and payments, conservation programs, incentive, indemnity, and disaster payments for commodities, and other farm disaster assistance.

Provides contact information as well as a listing of the programs and offices that make up the Farm Service Agency.

Includes biographies of the Farm Service Agency leadership.

Provides a history of the agency and describes its vision and mission.

Includes information about the budget, the strategic plan, and efforts to ensure that activities are managed efficiently.