Deciding that Kaufman County is an agricultural disaster area is not rocket science.
The drought continues with rainfall more than 24 inches below normal. Fields are brown, ponds are empty and the grass is gone.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture made it official this week declaring several East Texas counties, including Kaufman and Van Zandt disaster areas.
This will allow farmers to receive low-interest loans. The area also was declared a disaster area last fall.
However, Kaufman County is not a primary disaster area, but a “contiguous” disaster. This limits some federal assistance, said Beverly Boyd with the Texas Department of Agriculture. Counties receiving primary disaster status are Fannin, Hopkins, Hunt, Jeff Davis and Lavaca counties.
However, Ms. Boyd said most rural counties have received some type of disaster declaration.
U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling asked Gov. Rick Perry to seek the disaster declaration, and County Judge Wayne Gent supplied the information necessary to support the request. Mr. Hensarling announced earlier this week that it had been granted.
"This is an important and necessary step, but not the end of the road," Mr. Hensarling said. "I will continue to work help East Texas producers get the help they need to overcome this devastating drought."
The USDA has said this is a 50-year drought, meaning a drought this serious is likely to occur once every 50 years.
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