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ing many who have suffered under persistent drought. That includes many states in the southern Plains like Texas, which saw severe drought in 2011 and 2012, and California, which is still in the grips of a drought.
• USDA's ability to get the disaster programs up and running has impressed politicians and ranchers, not to mention rancher-politician hybrids like Cammack.
• "As the federal government goes, this whole thing has happened at lightning speed," he said.
• The last time a farm bill was enacted, in 2008, it took more than a year to re-establish the disaster programs and begin taking applicants. This time, USDA has succeeded at its goal of taking applications within 60 days of the farm bill becoming law. According to the USDA, applications have been going smoothly across the country.
• Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has promoted the program in recent days, trying to ensure that those eligible know what information they need to provide. In an interview with The Associated Press, he said USDA used the time while Congress debated a new farm bill to prepare the programs, which were never in jeopardy in negotiations, to make sure that they were ready to move quickly when Congress passed the bill.
• He said lawmakers and President Barack Obama, who directed Vilsack to expedite the program as well, kept pressure on the agency to succeed at speeding up the process.
• "These poor folks had to wait for almost three years to get help and assistance," Vilsack said of farmers and ranchers. "There were extraordinary droughts in 2012, massive snowstorms in 2013, this has really put a lot of stress on our producers. So this had to be a priority."
• Members of South Dakota's congressional delegation, which pressed Vilsack to move quickly, said they were pleased to see the program up and running.
• Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D. noted that producers who suffered during the blizzard and "producers hit by the 2012 drought and other natural disasters" would soon get "much needed relief." Rep. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., said she was also pleased at how quickly the program was back up and running.
• The programs will come as welcome relief in South Dakota and parts of North Dakota that were battered by the Oct. 4-5 blizzard. An estimated 43,000 cattle and other livestock were killed during the storm.
• With no avenue to seek relief, many ranchers have struggled to continue, Cammack said. He planned to use his own experience applying for relief to help constituents understand the process.
• "I'm in a position where I'm in contact with a lot of folks and I can be of help for

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