ATLANTA (AP) — The wait continues for Georgia farmers who need more aid after Hurricane Helene, even as state and federal officials in other states announce agreements.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper on Tuesday announced Georgia farmers will receive $531 million, on the same day that federal and state officials announced $38 million in additional aid for South Carolina farmers.
But unlike in South Carolina, as well as earlier announcements in Florida, North Carolina and Virginia, Georgia's aid amount wasn't accompanied by a finalized agreement on how the state is going to hand out the block grant.
Matthew Agvent, a spokesperson for the Republican Harper, said Georgia officials are "ironing out administrative details in the agreement with USDA while we also finalize the state’s work plan.” He didn't estimate when a final agreement might be signed. Agvent said Tuesday's announcement is significant, though, because it means state and federal officials agreed on how much money should be spent aiding farmers for different crops. Agvent called that “the vast majority of the negotiation process.”
“This funding is absolutely essential to help our farm families bounce back from Hurricane Helene, and our team invested hundreds of hours into the negotiation process to secure the maximum possible amount of federal funding for our state and our producers,” Harper said in a statement, citing the “urgency of the situation.” U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said in her statement that aid was being delivered “in record time.”
Harper, a strong supporter of President Donald Trump, has been facing questions about when money would begin flowing around the anniversary of Helene’s Sept. 26, 2024, landfall. Georgia officials previously said they had hoped to finalize their agreement in May or June.
The delays are frustrating Georgia farmers, who have operated for a year without making up losses not covered by insurance or other assistance. Some farmers have dipped into savings. Others have unpaid debts from last year, and couldn't borrow as much to plant 2025 crops. A few have sold equipment or land to generate cash. The financial stress comes as farmers face low prices for some crops even as the price of farming has risen.
Vann Wooten, a farmer in south Georgia's Jefferson Davis County, told WJCL-TV last week that he's stopped raising chickens and refocused on cattle and produce after the storm demolished his chicken houses, causing $2 million in damage. Georgia officials have said the poultry industry is a big target for additional aid.
“We still haven’t gotten nothing. We still haven’t even got a word,“ Wooten, also a county commissioner, told the television station. “We got a promise. But nothing on paper.”
Delays came even though state and federal officials promised the process would move quickly, unlike after October 2018's Hurricane Michael, when assistance to farmers got held up because of a dispute between Trump and Democrats over additional aid for Puerto Rico. Then, Georgia officials didn't start taking grant applications until March 2020.
U.S. Sen Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat, called Tuesday's announcement “welcome news” but said, “I’m concerned this agreement has taken so long and is still not finalized. Georgia farmers and foresters can’t wait any longer for relief.”
Helene storm cut a swath from Florida’s Big Bend across eastern Georgia and upstate South Carolina before causing historic flooding in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. It's the seventh-most expensive disaster in the United States since 1980, causing an estimated $78 billion in damage and 219 deaths.
Officials estimate Helene caused billions in property and economic damage to agriculture, including $5.5 billion in Georgia and $4.9 billion in North Carolina.
Federal agriculture officials have said they negotiating block grants with 14 different states following a $100 billion package passed by Congress in December. In July, they announced completed agreements for $676 million in relief for Florida farmers covering losses from not only Helene but also Hurricanes Idalia, Debby and Milton. They also announced $61 million in relief for Virginia farmers that month. Earlier this month, they announced $221 million for North Carolina. In all those cases, like with Tuesday’s South Carolina announcement, those included final deals on distribution.
FILE - A cotton picker moves through Chris Hopkins' cotton field, Dec. 6, 2024, near Lyons, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)
