The Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation published a twelve-page COVID-19 resource document on Friday to provide guidance and resources for Mississippi farmers and ranchers amid the coronavirus outbreak.
“Our staff put this resource document together as a tool for our farmers and ranchers to use,” MFBF President Mike McCormick said. “The document has a brief summary of major provisions in the recent stimulus package passed by Congress, as well as regulatory changes and adjustments by federal and state agencies in these challenging times.”
“We did our best to capture everything that we know today,” MFBF National Affairs Coordinator Justin Ferguson added. “Things will certainly change and we will update this document every few days to reflect these changes. One of the more important items in the document is a sample travel permission form that farms can use to provide to their employees to have on hand, as the stay home order issued by Governor Reeves takes effect today. At the federal level, the Department of Homeland Security deemed agriculture as a critical infrastructure industry several weeks back. Governor Reeves’ executive order matches the federal guidance in regard to agriculture.”
The guidance document provides details on the following topics.
Federal Appropriations (Stimulus) Provisions:
- SBA Loan Program Opportunities
- Economic Impact Payments to Individuals
- Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Funding
- Emergency Funding for Livestock/Specialty Crop
- Tax Provisions in the CARES Act
Federal Designations & Regulatory Actions:
- DHS: Agriculture Deemed Critical Infrastructure
- DOS: H-2 Visa Guest Worker Programs
- USDA-Farm Service Agency Update
- USDA-Risk Management Agency Update
- S. DOT (CDLs & Medical Cards)
- IRS Changes (Tax Deadlines Extended)
- REAL ID Implementation
- DOL Family & Medical Leave Changes
State Designations & Regulatory Changes:
- Executive Order Issued by Governor Reeves
- MDOT Regulatory Update
- MDAC Regulatory Update
- MS Department of Revenue Regulatory Update
- YMD Update
To view the COVID-19 Resource Document, click here.
To view the Families First Coronavirus Response Act Employee Rights, click here.