USDA to recall more than 9,000 furloughed workers to provide farm aid

The Agriculture Department (USDA) on Tuesday announced it would call back to work more than 9,700 employees currently furloughed during the government shutdown to help provide financial assistance to farmers and ranchers. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said in a statement that the USDA would reopen all Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices starting Thursday, allowing farmers and ranchers to apply for loans and financial assistance. Perdue also said the USDA would extend a deadline for farmers and ranchers harmed by retaliatory tariffs to apply for a special aid program announced by the Trump administration in July. “The FSA provides vital support for farmers and ranchers and they count on those services being available,” Perdue said in a statement. “We want to offer as much assistance as possible until the partial government shutdown is resolved.” Reopening FSA offices will allow farmers and ranchers to receive benefits from 14 loan and subsidy programs that had been halted by the partial government shutdown, the USDA said...MORE