[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 7, Volume 10]
[Revised as of January 1, 2007]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 7CFR1437.401]

[Page 609-610]
 
                          TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
 
  CHAPTER XIV--COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORATION, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 
PART 1437_NONINSURED CROP DISASTER ASSISTANCE PROGRAM--Table of Contents
 
Subpart E_Determining Coverage of Forage Intended for Animal Consumption
 
Sec.  1437.401  Forage.


    (a) Forage eligible for benefits under this part is limited to 
mature vegetation, as determined by CCC, produced in a commercial 
operation in three or more of the last five crop years, except producers 
who have not produced forage for the minimum period in order to preserve 
vegetation and prevent erosion, or otherwise mitigate the impact of 
disaster conditions, as determined by CCC, shall not be penalized. 
Benefits are not available for first-year seeding of alfalfa and similar 
vegetation when production is not produced in the seeding year, as 
determined by CCC. The commercial operation must use acceptable farming, 
pasture and range management practices for the location necessary to 
sustain sufficient quality and quantity of the vegetation so as to be 
suitable for grazing livestock or mechanical harvest as hay or seed. 
Forage to be mechanically harvested shall be treated under the rules for 
low-yield crops as calculated under Sec.  1437.103, except claims on 
forage for grazing benefits will be determined according to paragraph 
(f) of this section. The provisions in this subpart, however, shall 
govern for all claims including forage for mechanical harvest.
    (b) Producers of forage must, in addition to the records required in 
Sec.  1437.7, specify the intended method of harvest of all acreage 
intended as forage for livestock consumption as either mechanically or 
grazed.
    (c) Producers must, in the administrative FSA office for the unit, 
request an appraisal prior to the onset of grazing of any intended 
mechanically harvested forage acreage that will be both mechanically 
harvested and grazed.
    (d) Forage acreage reported to CCC as intended to be mechanically 
harvested, but which is, instead, subsequently grazed, will be 
considered, for crop definition purposes, as mechanically harvested. 
Expected production of the specific acreage will be calculated on the 
basis of carrying capacity. The loss of such grazed forage shall be 
determined according to paragraph (f) of this section. Except, beginning 
with the 2005 crop year, for acreage intended to be mechanically 
harvested which is instead, subsequently grazed, the loss of intended 
mechanically harvested forage may alternatively be determined based on a 
review of acceptable production evidence or appraisal of the specific 
crop acreage. As part of the payment computation for this loss, intended 
mechanically harvested forage crop acreage that is not mechanically 
harvested, but instead grazed, shall be deemed to be un-harvested for 
the purposes of determining a payment factor.
    (e) Small grain forage is the specific acreage of wheat, barley, 
oats, triticale, or rye intended for use as forage. Small grain forage 
shall be considered separate crops and distinct from any other forage 
commodities and other intended uses of the small grain commodity. In 
addition to the records required in Sec.  1437.7 producers must specify 
whether the intended forage crop is intended for fall/winter, spring, or 
total season forage. In addition to other eligibility requirements, CCC 
will consider other factors, such as, water sources and available 
fencing, and adequate fertilization to determine small grain forage 
eligibility, yields, and production.
    (f) CCC will establish forage losses of acreage intended to be 
grazed including, in some cases, acreage intended to be mechanically 
harvested but instead subsequently grazed, on the basis of:
    (1) The percentages of loss of similar mechanically-harvested forage 
acreage on the farm, or on similar farms in the area when approved 
yields have been calculated to determine loss, or
    (2) Where there is no similar mechanically-harvested forage acreage 
on the farm or similar farms in the area,

[[Page 610]]

the collective percentage of loss as determined by CCC for the 
geographical region after consideration of at least two independent 
assessments of grazed forage acreage conditions. The assessments shall 
be completed by forage or range specialists in Federal, State, and local 
government agencies, educational institutions, and private companies not 
having a financial interest in the outcome of the assessment. Neither 
the assessments themselves, nor collective loss percentages established 
pursuant thereto are subject to appeal. CCC's determinations of 
geographical area for assessments and collective grazing loss are 
generally applicable to all similarly situated participants farming in 
such defined geographical region.

[67 FR 12448, Mar. 19, 2002, as amended at 71 FR 13746, Mar. 17, 2006]