U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson, both Republicans, are pushing legislation offering additional financial aid to ranchers who lost an excessive amount of unborn livestock in a disaster.
The legislation could help those in the Texas Panhandle trying to recover from devastating wildfires that killed more than 15,000 head of cattle, including pregnant cows.
If passed, the bill would enhance the Livestock Indemnity Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which pays livestock producers for excess deaths from severe weather, disease, or attacks by certain other animals, with payments equaling up to 75% of the average market price for the animal.
Up to now, the program hasn’t covered the death of unborn livestock, which creates a setback for Panhandle ranchers, who are trying to recoup their losses after the region was engulfed by wildfires in February and March which burned more than 1 million acres in the rural region.
According to a report released by a Texas House Committee tasked with investigating the fires, cattle losses are estimated to be $27 million.