§ 1430.604 - Eligibility.

(a) Producers in the United States are eligible to receive hurricane-related dairy disaster benefits under this part only if they have suffered dairy production or dairy spoilage losses in 2005 as a result of a hurricane disaster or related condition, in a hurricane-affected county. To be eligible to receive payments under this subpart, producers in a dairy operation must:

(1) Have produced and commercially marketed milk in the United States and commercially marketed the milk produced during the 2005 calendar year;

(2) Be a producer on a dairy farm operation physically located in an eligible county where dairy production and milk spoilage losses were incurred as a result of 2005 hurricanes, or a related condition, in and limiting their claims to losses occurring in those counties and contiguous counties;

(3) Provide adequate proof, to the satisfaction of the County Committee, of monthly milk production dumped and commercially marketed by all persons in the eligible dairy operation during the base month and claim period that corresponds with the applicable hurricane-related disaster during the 2005 milk marketing year, or other period as determined by CCC, to determine the total pounds of eligible losses that will be used for payment; and

(4) Apply for payments during the application period established by the Deputy Administrator.

(b) Payments may be made for losses suffered by an otherwise eligible producer who is now deceased or is a dissolved entity if a representative who currently has authority to enter into a contract for the producer or the producer's estate signs the application for payment. Proof of authority to sign for the deceased producer's estate or a dissolved entity must be provided. If a producer is now a dissolved general partnership or joint venture, all members of the general partnership or joint venture at the time of dissolution or their duly-authorized representatives must sign the application for payment.

(c) Producers associated with a dairy operation must submit a timely application and comply with terms and conditions of this subpart, instructions issued by CCC and instructions contained in the Application to be eligible for benefits under this subpart.

(d) As a condition to receive benefits under this part, a producer must have been in compliance with the Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation provisions of 7 CFR part 12 for the 2005 calendar year, as applicable, and must not otherwise be barred from receiving benefits under 7 CFR part 12 or any other law or regulation.

(e) Payments are limited to losses in eligible counties, in eligible months.

(f) All payments under this part are subject to the availability of funds.

(g) Eligible losses are determined from the applicable base month that corresponds to the hurricane disaster or related condition and must have occurred during the claim periods applicable to the disaster as follows:

(1) For Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita the base month is July 2005 and the corresponding claim period are the 2005 calendar months of August through December; and

(2) For Hurricane Ophelia and Hurricane Wilma the base month is September 2005 and the corresponding claim period are the 2005 calendar months of October through December.