U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins has announced the release of Emergency Livestock Relief Program (ELRP) payments to support livestock producers impacted by drought or wildfire in 2023 and 2024. The payments, mandated by Congress, are being distributed ahead of schedule, fulfilling a commitment made by Secretary Rollins on May 7.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) is utilizing existing data from the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) to calculate and expedite these relief payments. Producers with an approved LFP application for 2023 and/or 2024 will automatically receive the emergency payments.
The American Relief Act, 2025, allocated funds for this emergency relief initiative, marking it as the first of two programs designed to aid livestock producers experiencing eligible losses. Additional ELRP assistance for other types of losses authorized by the Act, such as flooding, will be announced later this summer.
Eligibility for ELRP requires that producers have experienced severe drought conditions—classified as D2 for eight consecutive weeks or D3/extreme drought levels—or had their permitted grazing reduced due to wildfire during 2023 or 2024. They must also have applied and been approved for LFP in those years.
To simplify benefit delivery, no additional application is needed if required forms are already filed with FSA:
– Member Information for Legal Entities (if applicable).
– Form FSA-510: Request for an Exception to the $125,000 Payment Limitation.
– Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification.
Most producers likely have these documents on file but can verify their status through local FSA offices if uncertain.
ELRP payment calculations involve using reported livestock inventories and affected forage acreage or restricted animal units due to wildfire from the CCC-853 form submitted under LFP guidelines. Payments equal the gross LFP calculated amount multiplied by a payment factor set at 35% initially. If funds remain available after initial disbursements, a second payment may be issued.
Additionally, USDA is implementing economic loss assistance authorized under the Act with $10 billion allocated based on planted acres in 2024. Over $7.7 billion has been delivered so far with an application deadline set for August 15, 2025.
