Last week a group of Growers and Ginners from the Southeast went to Washington to visit with our members of Congress about a number of topics facing our members right now. Over just a day and a half, we were able to meet with over 60 Congressional offices. Groups met with various staff and members of Congress.

The theme of the week was the need for additional support given the huge increases in fuel, fertilizers and chemicals in recent months BEFORE the disruptions in the Middle East and even larger ones since the war started. There was also a lot of discussion regarding the need for the Buying American Cotton Act. BACA, as it is known would be a huge driver of demand for US cotton. Nearly every meeting we got support for both of our initiatives.

We were very encouraged by our meetings and look forward to more visits in DC over the next few months.

This is as much a public service announcement/reminder as anything else. In the past couple of weeks, we’ve heard several reports of scammers or attackers getting access to and transferring money via ACH payment transfer. We’ve heard of phishing schemes being successful and attackers taking over email accounts, and other attacks on ag.

We just want to remind everyone that you need to be VERY vigilant and find some training on what is okay to open and what is not in emails. There are a lot of YouTube training out there.

Make sure you are checking your bank accounts regularly for any unexpected transactions and don’t authorize transfers unless you are absolutely sure that the transfer is legitimate. This may even require working with those that you have accounts with (suppliers etc) to make sure they are being just as cautious.

With the wars in Iran and Ukraine, there has been a huge uptick in cyber attacks, phishing, and other attacks on our financial system and individuals. These geographic regions have some of the more competent networks of cyber criminals out there. Please be safe and watch your accounts.

DSF

Last Fall the Department of Labor made significant changes to the way the Adverse Effect Wage Rate is calculated across the H-2A program. In most cases this lowers wage impact to most users of the program.

The new Interim Final Rule became effective on the day it was release, just before the government shut down in October. The new rule sets up a two-tier skill requirement based wage and creates a wage adjustment for the H-2A workers accounting for some of the non-wage based benefits such as the cost of housing.

This interim final rule has been challenged by the United Ag Workers in California. The first hearing in the case will be today. An Interim Final Rule (IFR) becomes effective immediately while comments are taken and evaluated with a Final Rule coming out some months later. It is widely expected that the Final version of this rule will come out early this summer. This could complicate this law suit. If the FR comes out before the judge rules in the case, it could become a moot point as the IFR (the rule that was challenged) would be replaced by the final rule. If the judge rules against the IFR in the case before the Final Rule is published, the IFR could be tossed out and the Final Rule blocked.

There’s a lot going on with this case and it could make a significant difference in the wages paid to H-2A workers this fall. We will be watching for the outcome of this case as it makes its way through the court.

DSF

Okay… we aren’t looking to hire anyone…. We need YOUR help. From time to time, we go to Washington with our counterparts in Southern Cotton Growers. We discuss a number of topics including how costs have skyrocketed in the past several years. While having individual stories is great, we need more broad data. It really helps to be able to show survey data over time to show that the cost of insurance, energy labor and others have gone up while, given commodity prices, we haven’t been able to pass those costs along.

The most comprehensive data we can be part of is to participate in the National Cotton Ginners gin data survey. Please review the article below that appeared in a recent Cotton’s Week. We need as many of you as possible to participate. This data is very helpful in representing our industry within the states and in Washington.

DSF

Ginning Cost Data Needed

The National Cotton Ginners Association urges all ginners to complete the USDA Agricultural Research Service’s 2026 Cost of Ginning Survey.  The electronic survey questionnaire is available from the NCGA website Electronic Gin Cost Survey. In addition, a fillable paper document can be downloaded and submitted to hashley@cotton.org.  After the data has been inputted the form will be destroyed. Gin Cost Survey – Fillable Form. It is important that you participate in this confidential survey.  There will be a drawing for two Bass Pro Shop gift cards for those ginners completing the survey by May 31. 

The cost of ginning cotton is an important concern for producers and ginners, and data from this survey provides information about key variable costs as a component of the overall cost of ginning cotton. The confidential survey also helps to 1) identify historical trends of gin operation and 2) document the incorporation of new technologies for maintaining or reducing ginning costs.

Questions regarding the survey should be addressed to Harrison at 901-260-8049 or hashley@cotton.org.

The enrollment period for the Farmer Bridge Assistance Payments has opened. Famers with a Login.gov account can find pre-filled applications online. Those that do not have a login.gov account can find the application at their FSA office according to the FBA website at USDA.

$12 Billion in assistance has been set aside for this program. $11 Billion of this is for row crops and could be delivered as soon as February 28, 2026. As a reminder, farmers needed to have planted acres on record at the FSA office by Dec 19, 2025 to qualify and cotton will be paid at a rate of $117.35 per acre, the second larges per acre payment.

More information can be found including instructions for applying for the program at:

https://www.fsa.usda.gov/resources/programs/farmer-bridge-assistance-fba-program

DSF