COVID-19 and USDA Farm Loan Flexibilities [June 3, 2020]

From the Document: On May 21, 2020, the U S Department of Agriculture (USDA) temporarily expanded the Disaster Set-Aside (DSA) provision to allow flexibility for farm loan repayment due to the economic effects of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic The set-aside provision allows a borrower to move a loan payment owed to USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) to the end of the loan or, in the case of an annual operating loan, to extend the payment by a year Interest continues to accrue on the deferred principal;neither the interest nor the principal is forgiven The set-aside (deferment) is meant to provide financial relief and cash flow flexibility during a crisis Earlier during the pandemic, on March 26, 2020, USDA announced certain flexibilities in its loan-making and servicing procedures These included relaxing deadlines, accommodating social distancing, and temporarily suspending loan accelerations and new foreclosures COVID-19 (Disease);Epidemics;United States Department of Agriculture;Disaster relief;Agricultural credit;Loans;Economic assistance