To be an eligible producer for a payment under this subpart, the person must be a producer of wheat, barley, oats, or triticale in the applicable crop years. Also, to be an eligible producer, the person must meet all other qualifications for payment that are set out in this subpart, set out in parts 12, 718, 1400, and 1405 of this title. A person will not be considered the producer of the crop unless that person was responsible for the planting of the crop and had control and title of the crop at all times, including, at the time of planting and the time of the request for a payment under, this subpart.
A minor may participate in the program if the right of majority has been conferred on the minor by court order or by statute, or if the minor participates through a guardian authorized to act on the minor's behalf in these matters. Alternatively, a minor may participate if the program documents are all signed by an acceptable (to CCC) guarantor or if bond, acceptable to CCC, is provided by a surety.
For the crop to be eligible, the crop, in addition to other standards that may apply, must be grown on land that is classified as “cropland” in FSA farm records or on land that FSA determines has been cropped in the last 3 years except that the land may also qualify if the land is committed to a crop rotation, normal for the locality, that includes harvesting the subject crop for grain. These rules are designed to assure, to the extent practicable, the available payment did not produce plantings that otherwise would not have occurred and the CCC may deny payments in any instance in which there is reason to believe that the planting was done for that purpose. To that end, if the commodity involved has not been previously grown by the producer or is not one which is not predominately produced locally, the producer must submit evidence of seed purchases for planting the commodities and other evidence deemed needed or appropriate by the COC in order to assure that the program goals are made and that the land was not planted to an eligible commodity simply to obtain a payment. Also, the land to be eligible must, for the year involved, be grazed and cannot, during the crop year, be harvested at any time for any purpose, except as determined by the Deputy Administrator to accommodate producers with a history of double-cropping when the crop to be harvested is not the crop for which a payment is to be made under this subpart. Land will be considered grazed only to the extent that the crop on the land is consumed in the field as live plants by livestock for the normal period of time for grazing in the area.
A producer must, at the time the LDP agreement is signed, meet all other eligibility criteria for obtaining LDPs including AGI and payment limitation requirements as specified in part 1400 of this chapter.
For producers of triticale who obtain a payment under this subpart the producer must enter into an agreement with CCC to forgo any harvesting of triticale on the acreage for which such a payment is made.
No payment will be made if the crop could not have been harvested because of weather conditions or any other reason.
The producer must retain the control and title of the commodity for which the payment is sought from the date of planting through the date on which mechanical harvesting of the crop would normally occur.
Producers who elect to graze their wheat, barley, oats, or triticale will not be eligible for an indemnity under the Federal Crop Insurance Program provisions of Chapter IV of this title or a payment under the Noninsured Crop Assistance Program authorized under part 1437 of this chapter.