Middle and Western Tennessee farmers and ranch hands whose tools or equipment were damaged by the April 2-24 severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding may be eligible for disaster assistance. FEMA assistance is available to replace disaster-damaged essential tools, supplies, equipment and items required for employment or for self-employment.
Coverage for Tools and Equipment
Family-owned farms typically have a variety of equipment needed to conduct business. These include, but are not limited to, tractors, plows, seeders or planters, harvesters, sprayers, hay balers and utility vehicles. These items are all potentially eligible for FEMA disaster assistance if applicants can show that they were damaged by the disaster, the applicant does not have another working item that can meet this need, and the loss of the item was not covered by insurance. Crops and livestock are not “tools and equipment” because they are the products of a farming operation, whereas tools and equipment are the means of production.
Ranch hands may be eligible for assistance to replace disaster-damaged tools and equipment not covered by insurance when they can show these items are required by their employer. Assistance is based on a need to replace disaster-damaged essential tools, supplies, equipment and items required by an employer as a condition of employment, but NOT provided by the employer.
Many of these items have substantial costs, but it is important to remember that assistance for uninsured occupational tools is limited to the maximum amount of Other Needs Assistance an applicant may receive. Additional assistance to help meet these needs may also be available from the U.S. Small Business Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Apply for FEMA assistance online at DisasterAssistance.gov, use the FEMA App for mobile devices or call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. To view an accessible video on how to apply, visit Three Ways to Apply for FEMA Disaster Assistance - YouTube. The deadline to apply is Aug. 19.
Farmers and ranch hands may also visit any Disaster Recovery Center to apply, get updates about a FEMA application and answers to questions. Find a center here: DRC Locator (fema.gov).