Crop Insurance Overhaul Proposed: Bill Targets Small, Diverse Farms with Streamlined Aid, Faster Payouts

The Save Our Small Farms Act of 2025 aims to significantly revamp federal crop insurance programs, making them more accessible and effective for small-scale, diversified, direct-to-consumer, and historically underserved farmers. It proposes major changes to the Noninsured Crop Assistance Program (NAP) and Whole Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP), introduces incentives for program transitions, increases payout percentages for certain losses to 100% of market value, and mandates the development of a new weather-based index insurance policy.

Less Paperwork, More Protection

For farmers juggling diverse crops and direct sales, navigating existing programs can be a headache. This bill tackles that by requiring a streamlined NAP application process, cutting down on acreage reporting requirements to just twice a year. It also introduces a voluntary revenue-based NAP option, allowing farmers to use their IRS Schedule F tax form to establish historical revenue – a potentially simpler method for those with complex operations. Need to report a loss on hand-harvested crops? The bill extends the notification window and allows for remote appraisals (think photos or drones) if an adjuster can't make it out within 72 hours, aiming for quicker assessments. Furthermore, it boosts the NAP compensation for weather losses from 65% to 100% of expected market value and raises the payment cap to $600,000 for limited resource, beginning, socially disadvantaged, and veteran farmers, who also get a break on premiums.

Making 'Whole Farm' Work Better

The Whole Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) program, designed for diversified farms, also gets a tune-up. Key changes include removing the $1.5 million liability cap, allowing Schedule F tax forms to establish revenue history, and making it easier to account for market price declines due to natural causes. The bill pushes for quicker application decisions (within 75 days), better agent training and tools (including an agent finder), and higher agent incentives to promote WFRP. It also aims to smooth out the impact of bad years by allowing indemnities (payouts) to count as historic revenue and expands the popular Micro Farm plan nationwide, increasing its revenue eligibility cap and allowing participants to also hold other crop-specific policies.

Hedging Bets on the Weather

A significant new initiative is the development of a 'single index insurance policy'. This isn't your traditional crop insurance; instead, it would trigger payouts based on specific weather events (like extreme heat, flooding, or drought) hitting a county, using official NOAA data. The goal is faster, simpler payouts – within 30 days of a covered event – with less farm-level assessment needed. It's designed with small farms (under $350k adjusted gross income) and underserved producers in mind, offering seasonal coverage and buy-up/buy-down options. This policy is still in the research and development phase, with stakeholder input required before a report goes to Congress.

The Bottom Line for Small Operations

Overall, this legislation directs significant attention and resources towards farmers often left behind by traditional insurance models. By simplifying applications, using familiar documents like tax forms, offering premium discounts (like a 25% discount on NAP for eligible groups, and transition discounts for moving to WFRP), increasing payment potential, and exploring innovative tools like index insurance, the bill attempts to lower barriers and provide a more reliable safety net. The focus is clearly on making risk management more practical and affordable for the diverse range of smaller farms that contribute to local food systems and agricultural variety.