Zombie Programs: The USDA Programs Nobody Uses
Programs with Fewer Than 100 Payments
| Program | Payments | Total | Avg Payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biomass Crop Assist β Estab | 3 | $4K | $1K |
| Elap β Farm-Raised Fish | 7 | $19K | $3K |
| Tap β 2017 Hurricanes | 12 | $67K | $6K |
| Lfp β 2012 Drought | 15 | $124K | $8K |
| Sure β Supplemental Revenue | 18 | $289K | $16K |
| Milc β Milk Income Loss | 22 | $156K | $7K |
| Tobacco Transition Pmt | 24 | $1.2M | $50K |
| Apple/Potato Quality Loss | 28 | $340K | $12K |
| Cotton Ginning Cost Share | 31 | $890K | $29K |
| Geographically Disadvantaged | 35 | $52K | $1K |
| Livestock Indemnity 2017 | 38 | $410K | $11K |
| Whip β 2017 Hurricanes | 41 | $2.3M | $56K |
| Dairy Margin Coverage 2018 | 44 | $670K | $15K |
| Emergency Forest Restoration | 47 | $1.1M | $23K |
| Sugar Storage Facility Loan | 48 | $12.0M | $250K |
| Grassland CRP | 51 | $890K | $17K |
| Rtcp β Rural Transportation | 55 | $230K | $4K |
| Organic Certification Cost | 58 | $780K | $13K |
| Specialty Crop Block Grant | 62 | $3.4M | $55K |
| Beginning Farmer Contract | 65 | $450K | $7K |
| Biomass Crop Assist β Annual | 67 | $210K | $3K |
| Ecp β Emergency Conservation | 69 | $1.8M | $26K |
| Fsfl β Farm Storage Loan | 71 | $5.6M | $79K |
| Honey Bee Indemnity | 73 | $340K | $5K |
| Occsp Transition | 75 | $120K | $2K |
| Poultry Loss Contract | 76 | $890K | $12K |
| Quality Loss Adjustment | 78 | $2.1M | $27K |
| Rice Production Program | 79 | $4.5M | $57K |
| Sugar Marketing Allotment | 81 | $6.7M | $83K |
| Tree Indemnity Payment | 82 | $1.2M | $15K |
| USDA Linkage Program | 84 | $340K | $4K |
| Volcanic/Earthquake Assist | 85 | $67K | $788 |
| Wool & Mohair Support | 86 | $230K | $3K |
| Yield Adjustment Pmt | 88 | $1.4M | $16K |
| Aquaculture Grant Program | 89 | $560K | $6K |
| Biomass Harvest Incentive | 90 | $180K | $2K |
| Catfish Insurance Pilot | 91 | $92K | $1K |
| Durum Wheat Initiative | 92 | $340K | $4K |
| Export Credit Guarantee | 93 | $8.9M | $96K |
| Feedstock Flexibility | 94 | $2.3M | $24K |
| Grazing Lands Conservation | 95 | $670K | $7K |
| Hemp Production Pilot | 97 | $410K | $4K |
| Invasive Species Control | 99 | $780K | $8K |
Why These Programs Still Exist
Bureaucratic inertia is powerful. Once a program is created and codified in the Farm Bill, it persists until Congress actively eliminates it β which rarely happens. Each program has its own regulations, staff assignments, and institutional knowledge. Even programs with single-digit payments per year continue because:
- Statutory mandate: The Farm Bill authorizes them, so the USDA must administer them
- Constituency protection: Even tiny programs have beneficiaries who lobby to keep them
- Administrative overhead: Closing a program requires formal rulemaking and congressional approval
- Just in case: Some disaster-specific programs exist for rare events (volcanic eruptions, etc.)
The Reform Opportunity
Consolidating or eliminating zombie programs wouldn't save huge sums β $65.1M across all 43 programs is a rounding error in a $147 billion system. But it would reduce administrative complexity, free up FSA staff time, and simplify the bewildering landscape that farmers must navigate.
The program proliferation analysis explores the broader complexity problem. With 157 programs, even well-informed farmers struggle to know what they qualify for.