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Washington, DC -- Congressman David Davis announced today that the USDA Farm Service Agency has approved the local Farm Service Agency offices to release the 2007 tobacco buyout payments to East Tennessee farmers. Participating tobacco farms in the first district will receive approximately 12.5 million from the 2007 payments.
“The payments should be in the hands of First District farmers in a few business days,” Congressman Davis said. “I am excited that there will be more money for farmers who have participated in the TTPP program,” Congressman Davis said.
The Tobacco Transition Payment Program (TTPP), also called the "tobacco buy-out," helps tobacco quota holders and producers transition to the free market.
“The First District has a long tradition of tobacco farms,” Congressman Davis said. “I grew up on a small tobacco farm,” he said. “I know how important farms are to the livelihood of many in East Tennessee.”
The Fair and Equitable Tobacco Reform Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-357), was originally sponsored by Congressman William L. Jenkins and signed by President Bush on Oct. 22, 2004. It ended the Depression-era tobacco quota program and established the TTPP. The program provides annual transitional payments for 10 years to eligible tobacco quota holders and producers. Payments began in 2005 and continue through 2014. Payments are funded through assessments of approximately $10 billion on tobacco product manufacturers and importers.
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