5 Connecticut Counties Eligible For Federal Drought Assistance: Lamont

CONNECTICUT — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has designated New London and Windham counties as primary natural disaster areas due to the recent drought.

Gov. Ned Lamont announced he received notification from Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack on Friday.

Hartford, Middlesex, and Tolland counties have been designated as contiguous counties under the declaration as well.

The designation makes farm operators in primary counties and those counties contiguous to such primary counties eligible to be considered for certain assistance from the Farm Service Agency, provided eligibility requirements are met. This assistance includes FSA emergency loans. Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of the declaration to apply for emergency loans. FSA considers each emergency loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of production losses on the farm and the security and repayment of the operator., according to a news release from the Governor's Office.

Farmers interested in applying for the assistance must contact their local Farm Service Agency office.

"We encourage all producers to report losses to their local FSA office, as that data is critical to receiving disaster declarations, which provide the necessary resources to ensure the viability of agriculture in our state for seasons to come," said Connecticut Agricultural Commissioner Bryan Hurlburt.