Congress Makes Hurricane Clean-Up Funds Available to Nurseries

Nursery and greenhouse growers will be pleased with a provision in the recently passed Department of Defense Appropriations Act of 2006 (HR 2863). Included in the bill signed into law by President Bush on Dec. 30 is the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP), administered by the Farm Service Agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The bill appropriates $199.8 million to aid nurseries, oyster and poultry producers as they rebuild from damages incurred by hurricanes during 2005.

According to the Florida Nursery, Growers & Landscape Association (FNGLA), this is the first time that Congress has explicitly included nurseries in the list of recipients for earmarked funds. As outlined by the bill, ECP will make payments to producers for up to 90 percent of the cost of emergency measures to rehabilitate public and private farmland damages caused by the 2005 hurricanes. Previously, the program was not open to nurseries and covered only up to 75 percent of costs. The actual amount of aid that nurseries may receive is dependent upon the total number of ECP applicants and claim amounts.

The bill passed by Congress did not provide funds to offset crop losses for any Florida agricultural commodity. However, FNGLA reports that the USDA announced in late December that it will provide a minimum of $200 million specifically for Florida as a result of the hurricanes in the 2005 calendar year. “The Bush Administration recognized and answered this critical need,” the association says. These funds will be administered by FSA and available to all Florida agricultural crops. Details as to how these funds and the ECP funds will be applied and distributed are still being worked out.

In the meantime, FNGLA and its members thank Congress and their state representatives for helping pass the legislation. “FNGLA takes pride in saluting the strong leadership provided by Florida’s congressional delegation,” the association said in a recent member announcement. “It’s important that all FNGLA members know how pivotal their visible leadership and active support was in the aftermath of the 2005 hurricanes. FNGLA also expresses its appreciation to the Florida and Dade County Farm Bureaus for their support.”

According to the office of Florida Congressman Tom Feeney, who voted in favor of the final version of HR 2863, Florida led the nation in 2003 in sales of potted foliage for indoor use and in foliage hanging baskets with sales of slightly more than $400 million that year. “Florida’s horticulture industry generates an important economic force in our state and throughout the nation,” the Congressman’s press office tells Lawn & Landscape. “This assistance is intended to help producers get back on their feet and continue to contribute to the agricultural industry.”

Feeney, whose district includes Daytona Beach, Edgwater, Port Orange, Winter Park, Maitland, Apopka and Titusville, looks forward to the recovery of the state’s nursery operations. He tells Lawn & Landscape, "The legislation will provide Florida growers the assistance needed to help remain at the forefront of many agricultural industries in spite of the tremendous impact of a very active hurricane season."