American Relief Act of 2025: Economic Assistance for NC Crop Producers

By Carly Haugh

On December 21, 2024, Congress passed the American Relief Act of 2025 (ARA) to address projected farm income losses in 2024. The legislation extends the 2018 Farm Bill through mid-March 2025, ensuring continuity in federal agricultural policy. It includes approximately $31 billion in ad hoc disaster aid for farmers, with $21 billion allocated for natural disaster relief to assist those affected by extreme weather events and $10 billion designated for direct assistance payments to crop producers. The Act’s economic assistance program aims to offset declines in farm revenue resulting from falling commodity prices and increasing production costs. These payments are expected to alleviate financial distress among producers and contribute to farm income stability as the sector navigates ongoing economic challenges.

In this issue of the NC State Economist, Yifei Zhang, Roderick Rejesus, Alejandro Plastina and Marc Rosenbohm explain how the economic assistance payments work and what the American Relief Act of 2025 will mean for North Carolina producers.

Read the NC State Economis