U.S. House passes bill giving relief to citrus growers impacted by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole
WASHINGTON, D.C. (FLV) – The U.S. House of Representatives voted Monday in favor of the Block Grant Assistance Act to provide long-awaited relief to Florida citrus growers impacted by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole in 2022.
The proposed Block Grant Assistance Act enables the creation of a program within the U.S. Department of Agriculture to support specialty crops, like citrus, damaged by natural disasters – giving the agency the authorization it needs to distribute the relief.
The legislation, H.R. 662, was filed by U.S. Rep. Scott Franklin, R-Fla.
The bill awaits a vote in the Senate. Companion legislation, S. 180, was filed in the Senate by U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., with Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., as an original co-sponsor.
“The Block Grant Assistance Act is essential to the recovery of Florida’s citrus growers from the severe damages inflicted by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole. That’s why I am grateful to Rep. Franklin and the U.S. House of Representatives for passing the Block Grant Assistance Act – relief Florida’s citrus growers have been eagerly awaiting since last fall,” CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual Matt Joyner said.
“Today’s passage is an important step in the right direction. Now, I urge the U.S. Senate to act quickly and pass the Block Grant Assistance Act to allow Florida citrus growers to rebuild and replant so we can continue to harvest and produce America’s favorite breakfast juice.”
The United States Department of Agriculture announced Friday the citrus crop forecast for the 2022-2023 harvest season is expected to be just 15.75 million boxes of oranges in Florida.
Additionally, the department forecasted 1.82 million boxes of grapefruit and 490,000 boxes of tangerines and tangelos in Florida.
The June forecast for the 2022-2023 season represents just 6.4% of the industry’s peak production of 244 million boxes of oranges during the 1997-98 season. The industry’s decline is a result of its battle against greening and the destruction and devastation caused by recent hurricanes.
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services estimated Hurricane Ian inflicted up to $675 million in damages to Florida’s citrus growers.
In December 2022, Congress appropriated $3.7 billion in aid for agricultural losses due to hurricanes and other natural disasters as part of the federal omnibus bill.
“Unfortunately, without the needed flexibility to allocate those funds, the much-needed relief has yet to reach Florida’s citrus growers,” the press release said.
Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson previously praised Florida’s congressional leaders for introducing legislation to help agriculture producers after Hurricanes Ian and Nicole.
“Florida’s agriculture community suffered more than a billion dollars in damage this past hurricane season, and the impacts are still being felt by producers today,” Simpson said in March.
