Farmers Hurt by May’s Tornados Offered No Interest Loans

After 14 Tornados wrecked a chunk of the state over the Memorial Day weekend, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture is stepping up to help. The MDA is making zero-interest loans available to farmers who suffered physical property damage or livestock death as a result of the storms.

‍

Here’s Five Fast Facts on Storm Damage Loans:

‍

1. 🌪️ Who is Eligible? - Affected farmers in more than 50 counties who earned more than 50% of their annual gross income farming for the past three years can apply for the loans. 
2. 🚜 What Do They Cover? - They can be used to help take care of lost revenue or expenses not covered by insurance.The funds can also be used for cleanup, repair or replace farm building and replace dead livestock.
3. 🐄 Where’s the money come from? - The Minnesota legislature just approved $2.5M in additional money to refill the Disaster Loan Program and that money will cover the interest. It’s been mostly recently used for drought and COVID-19.
4. 🌽 Who’s Handling All This? - Eligible farmers will have to work through their bank to get the loans from the Rural Finance Authority. The RFA interest rates are 0.0%
5. 💵 Where do I apply? - Visit the MDA website and download an application.

‍

🔥Bottom line: Those storms were devastating and upset a large portion of Minnesota’s economy. The fact that the state government is willing to help those affected, especially in a time where disaster funds are being pushed to the limit, is a big deal. Most importantly, it’s a prime example of your tax dollars in action!

‍

What do you think of the loans? Let us know by connecting with us on Social Media and be sure to share this newsletter with any friends & coworkers!

‍

Btw, If you’ve read this far and haven’t yet signed up for the weekly Paycheckology newsletter, CLICK HERE!