The USDA Risk Management Agency RMA announced up to $8.85 million available for cooperative agreements for risk management education and training programs.
The funding provides the needed resources for organizations such as universities, county cooperative extension offices and nonprofit organizations to develop training and education tools to help farmers and ranchers learn how to effectively manage long-term risks and challenges.
Available funding includes $4.85 million for the Crop Insurance in Targeted States Program for crop insurance education programs where there is a low level of federal crop insurance participation and availability. The targeted states are Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia and Wyoming.
Additionally, $4 million in funding is available for the Risk Management Education Partnerships Program, which provides funding for the development of general nationwide crop insurance education as well as other risk management training programs for producers.
The request for applications is available through Grants.gov (
www.grants.gov) and will be open for 60 days. Visitors can search by catalog of federal domestic assistance (CFDA) number 10.460, Risk Management Partnership program, or CFDA number 10.458, Crop Insurance in Targeted States.
Applications for the Crop Insurance in Targeted States Program and Risk Management Education Partnerships Program are due by 5 p.m. ET on July 10, 2017. All applications must be submitted electronically through the Results Verification System website (rvs.umn.edu) and received by the deadline.In 2016 crop year the Federal crop insurance program insured 290.9 million acres, with 1.18 million policies and $100.5 billion worth of coverage (as of April 26, 2017).