BOZEMAN — The continuing federal government shutdown is leading to negative impacts for some Montana farmers.
“This government shutdown really couldn’t have come at a worse time,” said Scott Kulbeck, Executive Vice President of the Montana Farm Bureau Federation, which he says is the voice for agriculture in Montana.
MTN spoke with Ty Kraft, a fifth-generation farmer in Bozeman.
“I feel really lucky to get to do what I do,” said Kraft.
Kraft said his farm grows horse hay and small grains. MTN asked Kraft if he’s noticed any impacts from the government shutdown so far.
“There hasn’t been any direct impact on us,” said Kraft.
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While Kraft has not noticed any shutdown-related impacts, other farmers have.
“America's farmers and ranchers, we’re facing an economic storm that we really haven’t seen for years,” said Kulbeck.
Kulbeck says that Montana farmers are being impacted by the shutdown in several ways.
“Without those USDA county offices open, farmers are having a hard time getting access to important resources like disaster payments and loans,” said Kulbeck.
Disaster payments, as Kulbeck explains, help protect farmers during difficult economic times, ranging from natural disasters to low commodity prices.
“Those disaster payments bridge the gaps when times are tough,” he said.
Local Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices are set to re-open on Thursday, Oct. 23, potentially alleviating those issues.
Kulbeck says another impact is the absence of critical USDA reports.
“We don’t have a team of economists telling us what to sell or what the market looks like,” said Kulbeck. “We depend on a lot of those statistics USDA puts in those reports to make those economic decisions.”
Watch related coverage: Montana farmer reacts after USDA announces reopening offices amid government shutdown
The government shutdown effects don’t stop there.
Walter Schweitzer, a third-generation farmer and president of the Montana Farmers Union, says the government shutdown has been especially detrimental to farmers living on a shoestring budget.
“Any commodities that they’ve sold since the shutdown, they haven’t been paid for,” said Schweitzer.
As Schweitzer explains, the checks that farmers receive for selling commodities need to be signed off on before they are deposited.
“Especially in the rural communities in Montana, the farmers are the base of their economy,” said Schweitzer. “If farmers can’t pay their bills, if they're waiting to get paid, it’s going to cause delays of all things on the economy side in rural communities.”
For the organizations MTN spoke with, the main goal is for farmers to get through what they call this "economic storm."
“We don’t shut down when the time gets tough; we don’t think the government should either,” said Kulbeck.
