WASHINGTON (DTN) -- On Tuesday, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said the agency is "100% supportive" of bringing back the prevented-plant buy-up option under federal crop insurance.

The statement came during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing when Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., inquired about an update.

"The number one risk management tool that our farmers have is crop insurance, and the buy-up option is critically important. It covers ... 67 million acres of farmland in this country," Hoeven said.

The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation removed the 5% buy-up coverage for prevented-plant from federal crop insurance in December 2025.

In June, USDA Undersecretary for Farm Production and Conservation Richard Fordyce acknowledged the public response to the rule change, noting USDA received approximately 350 comments. "Overwhelmingly, those comments were to reinstate PP 5%," he said. "That is under consideration currently ... I am positive personally that we'll have a positive resolution to that," Fordyce said.

"Given the challenges facing farm country, we worked very hard to restore this prevented-plant buy-up option to provide our producers with an additional layer of protection when disaster prevents them from planting their fields," Hoeven said.

Prevented-planting coverage is included in eligible federal crop insurance policies, and producers previously had the option to purchase additional prevented-plant buy-up coverage equal to 5% of their prevented-planting payment.

Scott Metzger, American Soybean Association president and Ohio soybean farmer, said in a statement, "We appreciate Senator Hoeven's leadership and Secretary Rollins' commitment to this effort."

ASA said its work is not done until the protection is restored.

"Crop insurance is the cornerstone of the farm safety net, and restoring the prevented plant buy-up option will provide farmers with greater certainty as they navigate increasingly unpredictable weather and challenging economic conditions," Metzger said.

See DTN's Previous Coverage: Farmers Lose PP Buy-Up Under New Rule: https://www.dtnpf.com/….

Sen. Hoeven Prevented Plant Return Announcement: https://www.hoeven.senate.gov/….

Jake Zajkowski can be reached at jake.zajkowski@dtn.com

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