The majority of farmers selling local foods have suffered severe market disruptions due to COVID-19.
U.S. Representative Alma Adams (NC-12) introduced the Local and Regional Farmer and Market Support Act (HR 8096) in the House of Representatives. The bill is a comprehensive approach to help small and mid-scale farms, farmers markets, and local food businesses cope with the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Local and Regional Farmer and Market Support Act would:
Create a COVID-19 relief payment program for farmers, who sell in local and regional markets, based on their lost revenue.
Ensure Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) producers and low-income communities of color receive equitable access to COVID-19 relief programs.
Provide emergency response grants for farmers markets and local food enterprises to implement public health protections and COVID-19-friendly marketing practices.
Invest in the restoration and enhancement of local and value-added agriculture markets.
We hope to get this proposal included in the COVID-19 stimulus package being negotiated in Congress right now. Your voice can make a critical difference and help keep local farms in business.
Please call our US Senators and urge them to support local food in the next COVID-19 stimulus bill by introducing a Senate version of the Local and Regional Farms and Markets Support Act.
New York State Senators can be reached here:
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand
Gillibrand.senate.gov
478 Russell
Washington, DC 20510
202 224-4451
James M. Hanley Federal Building
100 South Clinton Street, Rm. 1470
Syracuse, NY 13261
315 448-0470
Sen. Charles Schumer
schumer.senate.gov
322 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202 224-6542
James M. Hanley Federal Building
100 South Clinton Street, Rm. 841
Syracuse, NY 13261
315 423-5471
Find your senators: www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Here is a script you may use (adapt as you like):
“Hello, my name is _________ and I am a constituent and a voter (tell them if you’re a farmer!).
I’m calling to urge you to support small and mid-scale local farms in the next COVID-19 relief package. Three out of four small farms are losing significant income because restaurant, farmers market, and agritourism sales have shrunk due to the pandemic. Many local farms in our community will be out of business by the end of the year if they don’t get targeted relief in the next COVID-19 stimulus bill.
Current USDA programs pay local farmers just pennies per pound on the crops they produce, which doesn’t come close to the losses local farms are suffering. The Local and Regional Farms and Markets Support Act has been introduced in the House of Representatives as House Bill 8096. Please introduce a Senate companion to House Bill 8096 so our local farms can receive the support that meets their needs in the next COVID-19 stimulus bill.
Thank you for your time."
If your call is routed to an answering machine, please leave a message. It will make a difference!
General tips
Your representative and senators were elected by you and upwards of a million to tens of millions of your fellow Americans, but by law they each only have a small team of correspondents on staff to read and respond to all of their mail.
Be patient and respectful to the staff member you reach — you want them on your side, don’t you?
The way to stand out is to provide a brief but specific personal story about how this bill would affect your life.
Do they want to hear from you? Yes! They need your support next election. But that doesn’t mean you’ll change their mind. On hot issues, their vote is often already made up. But on other issues, you could be their first constituent to weigh in. It is always worth the effort to let your representatives know your concerns about the issues that matter to you.
*Information above was partly provided by the Farmers Market Coalition Advocacy alert messaging