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Nominations now open for farmers and ranchers to serve on USDA Farm Service Agency county committees

Nominations are now being accepted for farmers and ranchers to serve on local U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) county committees.

These committees make important decisions about how federal farm programs are administered locally. All nomination forms for the 2026 election must be postmarked or received in the local FSA office by Aug. 3, 2026.       

“Local voices matter, and agricultural producers play an important role in shaping how federal farm programs serve their communities,” said FSA Administrator Bill Beam. “With nominations now open for FSA county committees, producers have an opportunity to put Farmers First by ensuring local farmers and ranchers have a voice in program delivery.” 

Elections for committee members will occur in certain Local Administrative Areas (LAA). LAAs are FSA committee elective areas in a single county or multi-county jurisdiction and may include LAAs that are focused on an urban or suburban area.     

Producers interested in serving on the FSA county committee can locate their LAA at  fsa.usda.gov/coc and determine if their LAA is up for election by contacting their local FSA office.     

Agricultural producers may be nominated for candidacy for the county committee if they:    

  • Participate or cooperate in a USDA program.   
  • Reside in the LAA that is up for election this year.      

A cooperating producer is someone who has provided information about their farming or ranching operation to FSA, even if they have not applied or received program benefits.      

Individuals may nominate themselves or others and qualifying organizations may also nominate candidates. USDA encourages all eligible producers to nominate, vote and hold office.     

Nationwide, more than 7,700 dedicated members of the agriculture community serve on FSA county committees. The committees are made up of three to 11 members who serve three-year terms. Committee members play a key role in how FSA delivers disaster recovery, conservation, commodity and price support programs, as well as making decisions on county office employment and other agricultural issues.     

Producers should contact their local FSA office today to learn more about their county’s election. To be considered, a producer must sign an FSA-669A nomination form. This form and other information about FSA county committee elections are available at fsa.usda.gov/coc.         

All nomination forms for the 2026 election must be postmarked or received in the local USDA Service Center by the Aug. 3, 2026, deadline. Election ballots will be mailed to eligible voters in November 2026.    

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