BEMIDJI -- Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced federal agriculture declaration for seven counties Wednesday.
The declarations come after several natural disasters in 2019, including a tornado, high winds, excessive rain and flooding, a release said. Beltrami, Clearwater, Kittson, Marshall, Nobles, Polk and Yellow Medicine Counties will be eligible to apply for assistance from the United States Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency.
Walz said in the release that "2019 was a difficult year for many Minnesota farmers, with several severe weather events occurring over many months. I am glad to see that the USDA FSA included all the events in their designation. These primary disaster declarations will provide some assistance to help our farmers recoup some of their losses."
Wednesday's action was the latest declaration made by Walz recently in response to 2019 weather events. In December, Walz announced state disaster assistance for Cass and Itasca Counties for damage sustained from severe thunderstorms in flooding in October.
In January, Walz authorized state disaster assistance for the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa for severe weather in October. Assistance was also authorized for Carlton Kittson, Lake of the Woods, Marshall and Roseau Counties.
