There's a bipartisan push in Georgia to help farmers recover from Hurricane Helene

Greg Bluestein, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Oct 1, 2024

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ATLANTA — Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff and Republican U.S. Rep. Austin Scott launched a bipartisan effort Tuesday urging congressional leaders to swiftly approve disaster relief aid for an agriculture industry facing “catastrophic losses” from Hurricane Helene.

They organized a letter signed by Georgia’s congressional delegation and more than a dozen other legislators that presses House and Senate leaders to urgently help farmers who have already faced “multiple growing seasons without sufficient federal support.”

“To prevent deep and lasting economic damage to the agricultural industry in the southeastern United States,” read the letter, “it is imperative that Congress make appropriations as soon as possible upon the completion of damage assessments to fully fund unmet agricultural disaster relief needs in our states and across the nation.”

Helene’s deadly path through Georgia killed more than 100 people across the region and its trail of destruction ravaged the state’s $83 billion agriculture industry, the state’s largest economic sector.

Earlier this week, Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper warned lawmakers that some farmers already struggling with high costs and labor shortages won’t make it to the next growing season without immediate assistance.

The scope of the damage is still being tallied. But Gov. Brian Kemp said at least 100 poultry facilities were damaged or destroyed, along with more than a dozen dairy farms. The Georgia Cotton Commission said some growers are reporting a total loss.

Ossoff and Scott, who represents a mostly rural swath of south Georgia, worked on the letter over the weekend after extensive meetings with farmers and agriculture industry leaders in hard-hit parts of the state.

None want a repeat of the long struggle to rebuild after Hurricane Michael, which ravaged South Georgia in October 2018. It took nearly a year of legislative wrangling to clear the way for the federal relief funds aid and longer still for it to trickle down to farmers.

“Federal agricultural disaster assistance is essential to help our states and our nation recover,” read the letter. “We urge you to work with the administration to ensure disaster relief resources are made available to our growers.”