Tardy Black farmers blame USDA for missing deadline
Sunday, November 21, 2004 at 02:37AM
TheSpook
Black farmers told a House panel Thursday that a landmark class-action
settlement of bias by the Department of Agriculture wasn't advertised
widely enough, resulting in thousands of farmers missing the deadline
to collect. The 1999 Pigford vs. Glickman settlement was aimed at
resolving complaints from black farmers who said they had been
systematically denied loans because of their race. With minimal
documentation, they could get payments of $50,000 and those who could
show overt discrimination could seek higher damages. The deadline was
October 1999 - six months after the settlement was filed - and some
lawmakers on the panel said as many as 66,000 black farmers may have
turned in late claims because of improper notice. "It has become
increasingly apparent that certain due process protections, fundamental
to the Constitution, are lacking in this case," said subcommittee
Chairman Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, who planned more hearings on the issue.
A report earlier this year by the Environmental Working Group and the
National Black Farmers Association found that when a farmer filed made
a big difference. Of the 22,354 farmers who met the original deadline -
only 8,623 were rejected compensation. [more]
Article originally appeared on (http://brownwatch.com/).
See website for complete article licensing information.