Codington County USDA Service Center - September updates

View as a webpage / Share Farm Service Agency  |  Natural Resources Conservation Service  |  Risk Management Agency Codington County USDA Service Center Update - September 30, 2025 In This Issue: CED Comments Conservation District Comments The Conservation Plan – A Solid Foundation for NRCS Work Applying for FSA Guaranteed Loans Creating a Farmers.gov Account Makes Receiving USDA Assistance Easy, Efficient Dates, Deadlines and Interest Rates CED Comments USDA Issues Second Economic Assistance Payment to Agricultural Producers - Over the last few days, USDA has been issuing a second Emergency Commodity Assistance Program (ECAP) payment to eligible producers for the 2024 crop year. Of the authorized $10 billion in ECAP assistance, USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) has already provided over $8 billion in payments to eligible producers to mitigate the impacts of increased input costs and falling commodity prices. Read More Certifying fall crops - As October arrives, we would like to remind producers who plant fall-seeded crops to report their acreage to FSA by November 17.  Fall seeded crops are commodities planted during the fall that will be harvested next spring.  Examples for crops in our area would be winter wheat or rye, but that is not an all-inclusive list. Thank you for your time. Jennie Budahl County Executive Director Codington County Farm Service Agency Top of Page Conservation District Comments One more time – leaf spot on common lilac The calls and visits continue for lilacs defoliated by leaf spot diseases. Leaf spot diseases, pseudocercospora and septoria among others, on lilacs are causing concern in eastern South Dakota. These leaf spot diseases begin as brown spots starting at the margins and progressing to blotches and eventually defoliation. Most of the calls and visits are for lilacs in windbreaks though I have seen in in landscape as well. I have looked at some windbreaks this past week where every lilac in a row is bare except for a few leaves at the tips. These diseases require warm, humid conditions to flourish, and it has been wet and humid this year. These leaf spot diseases are not a threat to otherwise healthy shrubs. Lilacs can withstand a year of defoliation, so no control is always necessary. If the lilacs were affected last year and again this year, a fungicide application of Chlorothalonil (labeled for this use) can be made just as the leaves are opening next spring to reduce the severity of the disease. Deanna Kunkel District Manager Codington County Conservation District Top of Page The Conservation Plan – A Solid Foundation for NRCS Work A key part of NRCS's 90-year history was the establishment of the conservation planning process by Hugh Hammond Bennett. Bennett was the agency's first chief and is considered the "father of soil conservation." He believed in considering each farm's unique conditions when developing a conservation plan. A conservation plan is a document outlining the strategies and actions that should be taken to protect and manage natural resources on a specific area of land. It serves as a blueprint for achieving conservation goals. To develop a conservation plan, a conservation planner and the customer (farmer, rancher or landowner) collaborate during the conservation planning process. Bennett believed that agency employees must walk the land with the customer and see their natural resource challenges and opportunities firsthand. Bennett also understood that natural resource concerns could not be treated in isolation; soil, water, air, plants, animals, and humans are all part of an integrated system that is inter-dependent. Learn more about how conservation planning has evolved over the years. Top of Page Applying for FSA Guaranteed Loans FSA guaranteed loans allow lenders to provide agricultural credit to farmers who do not meet the lender's normal underwriting criteria. Farmers and ranchers apply for a guaranteed loan through a lender, and the lender arranges for the guarantee. FSA can guarantee up to 95 percent of the loss of principal and interest on a loan. Guaranteed loans can be used for both farm ownership and operating purposes.    Guaranteed farm ownership loans can be used to purchase farmland, construct or repair buildings, develop farmland to promote soil and water conservation or to refinance debt.   Guaranteed operating loans can be used to purchase livestock, farm equipment, feed, seed, fuel, farm chemicals, insurance and other operating expenses.   FSA can guarantee farm ownership and operating loans up to $2,251,000. Repayment terms vary depending on the type of loan, collateral and the producer's ability to repay the loan. Operating loans are normally repaid within seven years and farm ownership loans are not to exceed 40 years.   For more information on guaranteed loans, contact your County USDA Service Center at 605-886-8202 or visit fsa.usda.gov.  Top of Page Creating a Farmers.gov Account Makes Receiving USDA Assistance Easy, Efficient Are you interested in working with USDA to start or grow your farm, ranch, or private forest operation, but don't know where to start?  Whether you're looking to access capital or disaster assistance through USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) or address natural resource concerns on your land with assistance from USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), a great place to start is farmers.gov. Farmers.gov is a one-stop shop for information about the assistance available from FSA and NRCS. The site also offers many easy-to-use tools for farmers, ranchers, and private forestland owners, whether you are reaching out for the first time or are a long-term customer with a years-long relationship with USDA. With a farmers.gov account you can: Complete an AD-2047, Customer Data Worksheet, prior to your first meeting with FSA and NRCS. View farm loan payments history from FSA. View cost share assistance received and anticipated from NRCS conservation programs. Request conservation assistance from NRCS as well as view and track your conservation plans, practices, and contracts. View, print, and export detailed farm records and farm/tract maps for the current year, which are particularly useful when fulfilling acreage reporting requirements. Print FSA-156 EZ, Abbreviated Farm Record and your Producer Farm Data Report for the current year. Pay FSA debt using the "Make an FSA Payment" feature Apply for a farm loan online, view information on your existing loans, and make USDA direct farm loan payments using the Pay My Loan feature. Learn how to create a farmers.gov account today! Top of Page Dates, Deadlines and Interest Rates Important Dates and Deadlines September 30 - Deadline for ARCPLC contract revisions October 13 - Federal Holiday - USDA Service Centers Closed November 11 - Federal Holiday - USDA Service Centers Closed  November 17 - Deadline to report fall seeded acres to FSA September 2025 Interest Rates Farm Loan Program 4.875% - Farm Operating Loans, Direct 5.875% - Farm Ownership Loans, Direct 3.875% - Farm Ownership, Joint Financing 1.875% - Farm Ownership Loans, Beginning Farmer Down Payment Farm Storage Facility Loan Program 3.750% - 3-Year term 3.875% - 5-Year term 4.000% - 7-Year term 4.375% - 10-Year term 4.500% - 12-Year term Commodity Loan Interest Rate 5.000% - Commodity Loans Top of Page Codington County USDA Service Center 1720 4th St NE Watertown, SD 57201 Phone: 605-886-8202 Extension 2 - FSA Extension 3 - NRCS and Conservation District Extension 4 - Rural Development Fax: 855-256-9428 FSA group Email: sdwatertow-fsa@usda.gov NRCS group Email: sdwatertow-nrcs@usda.gov Conservation District group Email: codingtoncd2@sdconservation.net USDA Service Center Locator FSA County Executive Director Jennie Budahl FSA Program Analysts Sarah Wanner Christy Busskohl Lisa Paulson Alexis Alexander, Pathways Intern Codington County FSA Committee Mike Paulsen - Chairperson Kevin Bach  Jason Ries Donna Redlin FSA Acting Farm Loan Manager Melody Budahl Farm Loan Program Technician Renae Zirbel NRCS District Conservationist  Ryan Mar Codington County Conservation District Deanna Kunkel - 605-882-4989 The next Conservation District meeting is scheduled for October 7, 2025, @ 9:00 a.m. in the USDA Service Center conference room.  Persons with disabilities who require accommodations to attend or participate in any meeting should contact Deanna Kunkel, by October 1, at 605-882-4989 or dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunication relay services. The next FSA COC meeting is scheduled for October 21, 2025, @ 9:00 a.m. in the USDA Service Center conference room.  Persons with disabilities who require accommodations to attend or participate in any meeting should contact Jennie Budahl, by October 10, at 605-886-8202 or dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunication relay services.

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