Texas Farmers Sue USDA for Alleged Discrimination

By tiffany.dowell

A group of Texas farmers recently filed suit against the United States Department of Agriculture claiming that the USDA improperly discriminated against them in administering various disaster and pandemic relief programs. Plaintiffs in Strickland v. USDA challenge the USDA’s disparate treatment for certain producers based upon race and sex. The Plaintiffs assert that the USDA violated both the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution and the Administrative Procedures Act.

The Plaintiffs note that over the past four years, Congress appropriated $13.7 billion to USDA to implement crop and livestock disaster assistance and nearly $11.2 billion to implement disaster assistance programs for corona virus-related relief.  The USDA took these appropriated funds and implemented a number of programs to aid farmers and ranchers who lost income, crops, or livestock due to natural disasters or the pandemic.

Specifically, the Plaintiffs’ Complaint addresses the following eight programs:  ERP 2021 Phases 1 and 2, ERP 2022 Track 1, ELRP 2021 Phases 1 and 2, ELRP 2022, CFAP 2 Bonus, and PARP.

The Plaintiffs are Texas farmers located in the Lubbock, Sudan, and Wellington areas who produce a variety of crops including cotton, peanuts, wheat, grain sorghum, sorghum silage, black eyed peas, hay, and cattle.

The Plaintiffs note that over the past four years, Congress appropriated $13.7 billion to USDA to implement crop and livestock disaster assistance and nearly $11.2 billion to implement disaster assistance programs for corona virus-related relief.  The USDA took these appropriated funds and implemented a number of programs to aid farmers and ranchers who lost income, crops, or livestock due to natural disasters or the pandemic.

Specifically, the Plaintiffs’ Complaint addresses the following eight programs:  ERP 2021 Phases 1 and 2, ERP 2022 Track 1, ELRP 2021 Phases 1 and 2, ELRP 2022, CFAP 2 Bonus, and PARP.

The Plaintiffs are Texas farmers located in the Lubbock, Sudan, and Wellington areas who produce a variety of crops including cotton, peanuts, wheat, grain sorghum, sorghum silage, black eyed peas, hay, and cattle.