Grain producers in southwestern Manitoba received an unwelcome nudge off the combine recently.
Farmers who were flooded in the spring of 1999 received a reminder letter from the province in late August, encouraging them to apply for the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance program before the Sept. 1 deadline.
Almost 6,000 farmers received $71 million in provincial disaster aid on the condition they apply for 1999 AIDA, even if they are not eligible for assistance. That got accountants’ phones ringing, said Terry Betker of Meyers Norris Penny in Winnipeg.
“Some of the guys, quite frankly, forgot about it,” said Betker.
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The deadline has since been extended to Sept. 29.
The provincial government could tell by the low number of AIDA applications that not all farmers affected by floods had filled out their forms.
Lorne Martin, manager of policy analysis for Manitoba Agriculture, agreed the province showed “really bad timing” by sending out a reminder in the middle of harvest.
The department and minister Rosann Wowchuk had also requested a deadline extension.
Farmers who received provincial disaster aid must fill out the forms even if they don’t qualify for AIDA so the provincial and federal governments can figure out how to cost-share the programs, said Martin.
When Manitoba’s previous Tory provincial government announced its unseeded acreage payments in the spring of 1999, the federal government refused to share the cost of the program.
Later, Martin said the federal government agreed to cost-share a portion of the program if Manitoba could prove it lowered farmers’ draw on AIDA.
The only way to make this case and get the cash is through farmers’ aid applications, said Martin.
“We’re talking millions and millions of dollars,” he said.
Farmers who don’t fill out AIDA forms may be forced to repay what they received from the provincial program, said Martin.
“Obviously, we don’t want to do that (claw the money back). We want to make sure producers file their AIDA applications so we can be assured of cost sharing.”
He also had some good news for flooded farmers who had negative margins for the 1999 AIDA year. The provincial and federal governments recently negotiated that the provincial disaster payment will count as income for 1999.
Originally, half the $50 per acre payment counted as income, the other half as an AIDA advance.
Treating the whole $50 per acre as income will mean farmers with negative margins receive a larger payment from the federal government.
