Following severe damage to Florida’s agriculture from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), U.S. Representative Scott Franklin (R-FL), and several Florida congressional colleagues are pressing the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to deliver essential disaster relief for Florida farmers.
The Florida Department of Agriculture estimates that the hurricanes caused $1.5 to $2.5 billion in crop and infrastructure losses across the state.
In a letter to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, Florida lawmakers emphasized the critical need for federal aid and policy flexibility to support recovery efforts. “These back-to-back major hurricanes have decimated Florida agriculture, our state’s second-largest industry,” the letter states. “it is our responsibility to work with USDA to best assist the producers who feed our nation. We appreciate your attention to this urgent matter.”…