Hoeven Outlines Two-Part Plan to Protect Farmers Impacted by Fargo-Moorhead Flood Protection

HORACE, N.D. – Senator John Hoeven today outlined a two-part plan he has worked to advance to help protect farmers who may be impacted by the operation of the Fargo-Moorhead region’s permanent flood protection project. The senator discussed how the approach for this regional, multi-state, multi-community project in the Red River Valley has always been to ensure it works for all stakeholders both upstream and downstream, highlighting how this two-part plan is another example of such efforts. Hoeven recognized the real impacts on farmers upstream of the diversion and thanked them for working with the Fargo Moorhead Diversion Authority and his office to develop this plan. The plan addresses an issue where federal crop insurance will not cover losses caused by high water levels resulting from the operation of the Fargo Moorhead Diversion. Federal crop insurance generally provides coverage for unavoidable natural disasters, but man-made events, such as the operation of the flood control structure, are not an insurable cause of loss. Accordingly, Hoeven: Secured legislation in the Senate Farm Bill 2.0 to protect upstream producers’ federal crop insurance coverage. Once the Farm Bill is passed, this will be the 18th piece of legislation Hoeven has passed to support the development of comprehensive flood protection in the Red River Valley. Specifically, the measure excludes affected years from the producers’ Actual Production History (APH). APH uses up to 10 years of historical yields to determine crop insurance guarantees. A reduction in APH due to operation of the project would undermine farmers’ ability to manage their risk and reduce the value of future federal crop insurance coverage. Hoeven’s legislation ensures farmers’ federal crop insurance coverage will not be affected by years when their acres are impacted by the diversion’s operations. Worked with local leaders to fund a crop loss program using the $100 million Hoeven secured from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers earlier this year. This funding was made available under legislation Hoeven passed directing the Corps to apply federal savings toward reducing the local cost share for flood protection in the Red River Valley. The program will be administered by the Fargo Moorhead Diversion Authority and uses $25 million from the overall funding. The program will: Provide 100 percent coverage for federally insured crops damaged by the diversion’s operations. Match the coverage level purchased by producers for prevented planting. “We’ve taken a comprehensive approach to flood protection in the Red River Valley, and our two-part plan is about fulfilling this promise for upstream farmers. To this end, my legislation addresses gaps in federal crop insurance coverage, while we are also using a portion of the $100 million we secured from the Corps to make producers whole when the diversion has to be put to use,” said Hoeven. “Crop insurance is farmers’ most important risk management tool, and protecting their Actual Production History is essential for maintaining coverage levels over the long term. At the same time, the crop loss program being administered by the FM Diversion Authority will help meet producers’ needs in the short term when high water levels resulting from the diversion’s operations damage their crops or prevent them from planting.” -###-