[fullwidth background_color=”” background_image=”” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding_top=”20″ padding_bottom=”20″ padding_left=”0″ padding_right=”0″ hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” menu_anchor=”” class=”” id=””][title size=”1″ content_align=”left” style_type=”underline solid” sep_color=”#000000″ margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” class=”” id=””]National Young Farmers Coalition announces introduction of a bill in the House that would encourage young people to take up farming as a career by reducing the burden of their federally backed college loans[/title][fusion_text]Monday, June 1st 2015
The National Young Farmers Coalition announced the introduction of a bill in the House today that would encourage young people to take up farming as a career by reducing the burden of their federally backed college loans. The Young Farmer Success Act of 2015, sponsored by Reps. Chris Gibson, R-N.Y., and Joe Courtney, D-Conn., would add farmers to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which currently includes debt relief for professions such as government service, teaching, and nursing, but not farming. According to the Department of Education, the current Loan Forgiveness program allows borrowers to qualify for forgiveness of the remaining balance of their federal Direct Loans after they have made 120 qualifying payments on those loans while employed full time by certain public service employers. The National Young Farmers Coalition argues that farming is a public service and should qualify for the program. The coalition noted that as the majority of existing farmers near retirement, the country will need at least 100,000 new farmers to take their place. Farmers over the age of 65 outnumber those under 35 by a margin of 6-to-1, and between 2007 and 2012, the number of young farmers increased by only 1,220.
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