An amendment tacked on to the 2012 Farm Bill by U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska would make commercial fishermen eligible to qualify for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Services Administration (FSA) Farm Operating Loan Program.
The proposed amendment includes “commercial fishermen” within the definitions of “farmer” and “farming” with respect to the FSA Operating Loan Program. The language also clarifies that, for the purposes of the program, the term “farm” includes a “commercial fishing enterprise.”
Fish farmers already benefit from FSA low-interest loans, and the eligibility of fishermen would put them on a “level playing field” with fish farmers and other farmers, according to Bruce Schactler, director of the National Seafood Marketing Coalition.
The fishing industry, including primary processors, has been working toward inclusion in more USDA programs and will continue to do so, said Schactler in an e-mail.
The amendment is co-sponsored by U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts. On Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada moved the Senate version of the 2012 Farm Bill — called the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2012 — forward, bringing it to the Senate floor. A vote is scheduled for Thursday.
