Hello Again!
Soon harvest will be completed and we will be preparing for the next crop year. In addition to cleaning and storing your equipment you should think about your 2009 farm plan.
As DCP sign-up is just around the corner, now is the time to report to your local Farm Service Agency any farming changes for the 2009 year. The most common change is a change in ownership of a farm. These changes could result in a reconstitution of your farm.
So what is a reconstitution? A reconstitution is a change in the land constituting a farm or tract. Farms and/or tracts can be combined with other farms and/or tracts. In addition, farms and/or tracts may be divided apart.
A tract is a unit of contiguous land that is both of the following:
Under one ownership;
Operated as a farm or a part of a farm.
A farm is made up of tracts that have the same the same operator with all of the following elements in common and substantially separate from other farms:
Labor;
Equipment;
Accounting system;
Management.
When a farm or tract is divided, the base acres will also be divided. The base acres can be divided several different ways. Below is the list of different division methods available:
Designation by landowner method
The designation by landowner method is the division of base acres in the manner agreed to by the parent farm owner and purchaser or transferee. (This method requires a minimum of two owners and requires signatures of all owners involved.)
Estate method
The estate method is the division of base acres for a parent farm among heirs in settling an estate.
Default method
The default method is the division of bases for a parent farm with each tract retaining the bases attributed to farm.
Direct and counter cyclical (DCP) cropland method
The DCP cropland method is the division of base acres in the same proportion as the DCP cropland that is being divided from the parent farm.
As you complete your harvest please continue to be safe and contact the Farm Service Agency for additional information!
That’s all for now,
FSA Andy
