Friday, September 2, 2011

Chambliss, Isakson Urge Support for Drought Disaster Declaration

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., joined members of the Georgia delegation this week in urging Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to declare drought-stricken counties in Georgia disaster areas, as requested by Gov. Nathan Deal. Since March 2011, many parts of Georgia have experienced extreme weather conditions and suffered numerous crop losses. With the USDA Secretarial Disaster Designation, Georgia farmers will be able to apply for emergency loans and other benefits to ease losses.

The text of the letter is below:


The Honorable Tom Vilsack
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave., SW
Washington, DC 20250

Dear Secretary Vilsack:

Since March 2011, Georgia has experienced severe drought and extreme heat conditions which have directly impacted agricultural producers across the state.

On August 15, 2011, the Honorable Nathan Deal, Governor of Georgia, sent a letter with a list of eligible counties as recommended by the Georgia USDA State Emergency Board. Therefore, we would encourage you to review and designate any eligible counties as Secretarial Disaster Areas as expeditiously as possible. It is vitally important that eligible producers suffering from disaster are able to utilize any federal assistance that may help offset losses that were suffered during the 2011 crop year.

We look forward to working with you throughout this process to ensure that eligible producers suffering from disaster are able to utilize any available federal assistance in a timely manner.

Sincerely,
Sen. Saxby Chambliss
Sen. Johnny Isakson
Rep. Jack Kingston
Rep. Sanford Bishop
Rep. Austin Scott
Rep. John Barrow
Rep. John Lewis
Rep. Lynn Westmoreland
Rep. Hank Johnson
Rep. Rob Woodall
Rep. Phil Gingrey
Rep. David Scott