“Introduction of the HEALS Act is a terrific next step in the process to provide much needed additional assistance to U.S. agriculture. We hope the full Senate will move quickly to debate and pass the bill. Once the Senate acts on the bill, we urge House and Senate leadership to move quickly to reach a bipartisan agreement on a final assistance package.

“The HEALS Act would provide substantial assistance to farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses. The bill provides $20 billion in direct assistance via USDA to agricultural producers. It dramatically simplifies the forgiveness process for small Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, better tailors the existing PPP to the needs of farmers and simplifies Farm Credit’s ability to make PPP loans to farmers and agribusinesses.

“Introduction of the HEALS Act follows House passage of the HEROES Act, which also would provide substantial assistance to ag producers and agribusinesses. Both bills include significant funding for USDA to provide additional direct assistance to farmers. That direct assistance is what America’s farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses need right now to help mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and protect our food supply.

“Farm Credit urges the Senate and House to act quickly to compromise the two bills and finalize the assistance package in the coming weeks.”

Source: Farm Credit Council

The post Farm Credit Statement on the HEALS Act appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

Van Hoose said:

“Parents working and students studying from home has brought the urban/rural divide on broadband to the fore in a way we can no longer afford to ignore. That same broadband would help rural residents avoid medical appointments through telehealth initiatives – decreasing their exposure to others at the hospitals and clinics. At the other end of the infrastructure equation, we’ve already seen the problems with our food supply chain. Once these processing plants return to normal operations, they will rely on roads, bridges, locks and dams – that are crumbling by the way – to transport that protein to consumers. As Congress considers future COVID-19 relief packages, they need to prioritize rural America’s infrastructure.”

Farm Credit supports rural communities and agriculture with reliable, consistent credit and financial services, today and tomorrow. It has been fulfilling its mission of helping rural America grow and thrive for more than a century with the capital necessary to make businesses successful and by financing vital infrastructure and communication services.

Source: Farm Credit

The post Farm Credit Support Rebuild Rural Letter, Focus On Rural Infrastructure appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.