The U.S. Department of Agriculture has decided to defer the accrual of interest for 2019 crop insurance premiums. USDA Under Secretary Bill Northey says that will be the case until either the applicable termination date or Jan. 31, 2020, whichever comes first.
The announcement, made Thursday, Nov. 14, means producers now have until Jan. 31, 2020, to pay 2019 premiums without accruing interest.
The change is for policies with an original premium billing date of Aug. 15, 2019, and was done to help farmers and ranchers nationwide affected by extreme weather in 2019. For any premium that is not paid by the new deadline, interest will accrue consistent with the terms of the policy.
