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For Immediate Release June 12, 2012
Contact: Ethel Truly, Communications Coordinator 601-965-4300, ext.102
(Jackson, Miss.) June 12, 2012 — Michael R. Sullivan, Executive Director for the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Mississippi, announced today that the nomination period for 2013 local FSA county committees will begin Friday, June15, and end Wednesday, August1, 2012.
To be eligible for nomination to an FSA county committee, a person must participate or cooperate in a program administered by FSA, be eligible to vote in a county committee election and reside in the local administrative area in which he or she would be a candidate.
Farmers and ranchers may nominate themselves or others, and organizations representing minorities and women also may nominate candidates. To become a candidate, an eligible individual must sign the nomination form, FSA-669A. The form and other information about FSA county committee elections are available online at http://www.fsa.usda.gov/elections.
Nomination forms must be postmarked or received in the local USDA Service Center by close of business on August1, 2012. Elections will take place this fall.
While FSA county committees do not approve or deny farm operating loans, they make decisions on disaster and conservation programs, emergency programs, commodity price support loan programs and other agricultural issues. Members serve three-year terms. Nationwide, about 7,700 farmers and ranchers serve on FSA county committees, consisting of three to 11 members elected by eligible producers.
FSA will mail ballots to eligible voters beginning Nov.5. Voted ballots must be returned to the local county office by mail or in person by Dec.3. Newly elected committee members and alternates will take office on Jan.1, 2013.
On June 4, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced his intention to appoint voting county committee members from the socially disadvantaged (SDA) community in county jurisdictions that lack fair representation. The goal is to ensure locally elected representatives reflect the diverse interests of their communities.
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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Stop 9410, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or (800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377-8642 (English Federal-relay) or (800) 845-6136 (Spanish Federal-relay).
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