A total of 21 Farm Service Agency offices in Nebraska, closed during the shutdown of the U.S. government, will reopen for three days in advance of tax filing deadlines this year, including the offices in Scottsbluff and Chadron.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – A total of 21 Farm Service Agency offices in Nebraska, closed during the shutdown of the U.S. government, will reopen for three days in advance of tax filing deadlines this year, including the offices in Scottsbluff and Chadron.
According to a press release, the Scotts Bluff County Service Center, 818 Ferdinand Plaza, Suite A, in Scottsbluff, and the Chadron Service Center, 1020 W. 6th St., in Chadron, will be open on Thursday and Friday, Jan. 17-18, and Tuesday, Jan. 22, to assist with existing farm loans and to help distribution of federal tax form 1099 to borrowers by Internal Revenue Service deadlines.
More than 20 Farm Service Agency offices across the state will reopen to provide limited, specific services,” said Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) in the release. “I encourage Nebraskans to closely review the services being offered and utilize them during this time.”
During the temporary office hours, staff will be available to process payments which were made on or before Dec. 31, 2018, continue expiring financing statements and opening mail to identify priority items, according to the release. Staff may also release proceeds from the sale of loan securities, signing checks brought in by producers which are jointly payable to the FSA.
During the temporary hours, FSA staff will not initiate new direct or facility loans, new farm loan guarantees, new marketing assistance loans or new applications for the Market Facilitation Program. A list of other services which will not be available to producers during the three-day period can be found on the USDA website at https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2019/01/16/usda-reopen-fsa-offices-limited-services-during-government-shutdown
While Jan. 15, 2019 had been the original deadline for producers to apply for MFP, farmers have been unable to apply since Dec. 28, 2018, when FSA offices closed because of the lapse in federal funding. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has extended the MFP application deadline for a period of time equal to the number of business days FSA offices end up being closed, once the government shutdown ends.
These announced days of limited staff availability during the shutdown will not constitute days open in calculating the extension. Producers who already applied for MFP and certified their 2018 production by Dec. 28, 2018, should have already received their payments.
