Source: POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 5/11/20

The department is expected soon to roll out the final framework for its $16 billion direct payment program for farmers, which was being reviewed by the White House budget shop last week. One of the primary changes since USDA announced the plan in mid-April will be the limit on the size of payments — but the specifics are still unknown, your host reports.

Change of plans: The department initially planned to cap the relief checks at $125,000 per commodity and $250,000 per farmer, which matches the general farm payment caps that Congress approved in the 2018 farm bill. But after heavy pressure from farm-state lawmakers and industry groups, Secretary Sonny Perdue said last week that USDA will increase the aid limits before the program is finalized this month.

“We agreed with them, and we’ve adjusted those payment limits,” Perdue said in an interview with radio network Brownfield Ag News, suggesting that the details will be revealed “when the rules come out.”

The good news: Farmers in need of a lifeline will be able to receive more money to offset their losses. Higher payment limits could especially help certain sectors like livestock, dairy and fresh produce growers, who warned that the caps were overly restrictive for farms with higher production costs or single-commodity operations.

But, but, but: USDA might run out of relief funds more rapidly as farms qualify for bigger payments. There’s also the political risk of larger producers vacuuming up the money and leaving less for small farmers — a frequent criticism of the Trump administration’s trade bailout in the eyes of Democrats and farm watchdog groups.

Limits on limits: There’s also growing scrutiny over restrictions on the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, which offers forgivable loans to small businesses (including farmers) to keep workers on their payroll for eight weeks. The agency’s Inspector General warned on Friday that the limits could stifle assistance for tens of thousands of borrowers, reports Pro Financial Services’ Zachary Warmbrodt.