10/13/05 DCP signups underway

Prior to the 2002 Farm Bill producers who signed up for government crop payments were signed up for the duration of the bill but that's no longer true. JOHNSON "Under the 2002 farm the direct and counter cyclical payment program is an annual contract and now producers have to sign up for this program on a year by year basis." John Johnson of the Farm Service Agency says signup for the 2006 direct and counter-cyclical programs is underway now. JOHNSON "Producers have to sign up for this program on a year by year basis or if they, for whatever reason perhaps, wanted to go into fruit and vegetable production on those acres they could actually skip a year and stay out of the program if they wanted to." You can signup between now and June first and it will cost you nothing. JOHNSON "If producers come in after June first they can still sign up. There's a $100 late fee at that point which applies all the way up to September 30th. . September first is the absolute end of the signup period." You can complete enrollment at your local Farm Service Agency office or you can do it online if you have an E-authentication account. You can get that online as well but you'll have to go to an FSA office to verify your identity. Voice of Idaho Agriculture Bill Scott