USDA Designates 46 Virginia Counties as Natural Disaster Areas

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a Secretarial natural disaster designation for 46 counties across Virginia, following drought conditions during the growing season. The designation allows the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) to extend emergency credit to producers in the affected areas who are recovering from the disaster.

What the Designation Means

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, these counties experienced a drought intensity of D2 (Severe) for eight or more consecutive weeks, or reached D3 (Extreme) or D4 (Exceptional) during the growing season — meeting the threshold for a Fast Track disaster designation.

This opens the door to FSA Emergency Farm Loans for eligible producers. These loans can be used to:

• Replace essential items such as equipment or livestock
• Reorganize a farming operation
• Refinance certain existing debts

FSA reviews each loan application individually based on the extent of losses, available security, and repayment ability.

Who Is Eligible

Impacted area: Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia

Primary counties (Virginia): Accomack, Alleghany, Amelia, Bath, Bland, Botetourt, Caroline, Craig, Culpeper, Dinwiddie, Essex, Fairfax, Fauquier, Floyd, Giles, Gloucester, Goochland, Greene, Hanover, Highland, King and Queen, King George, King William, Lancaster, Louisa, Madison, Mathews, Middlesex, Montgomery, Northampton, Northumberland, Nottoway, Orange, Page, Powhatan, Prince William, Pulaski, Rappahannock, Richmond, Roanoke, Rockbridge, Rockingham, Russell, Spotsylvania, Stafford, Westmoreland

Contiguous counties also eligible:

• Virginia: Albemarle, Amherst, Arlington, Augusta, Bedford, Brunswick, Buchanan, Carroll, Chesterfield, Clarke, Cumberland, Dickenson, Fluvanna, Franklin, Greensville, Henrico, James City, Loudoun, Lunenburg, Nelson, New Kent, Patrick, Prince Edward, Prince George, Scott, Shenandoah, Smyth, Sussex, Tazewell, Warren, Washington, Wise, Wythe, York, Alexandria (city), Buena Vista (city), Covington (city), Fairfax (city), Falls Church (city), Fredericksburg (city), Harrisonburg (city), Lexington (city), Manassas (city), Manassas Park (city), Petersburg (city), Radford (city), Roanoke (city), Salem (city), Virginia Beach (city)
• Maryland: Charles, Montgomery, Prince George’s, St. Mary’s, Somerset, Worcester
• West Virginia: Greenbrier, Hardy, Mercer, Monroe, Pendleton, Pocahontas, Summers

Producers in any of these counties who suffered losses from the drought may qualify to apply.

Application Deadline

Producers have until March 31, 2027 to apply for emergency loan assistance tied to this designation.

Where to Get Help

Farmers.gov offers several tools to help determine eligibility and next steps:

• Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool
• Disaster Assistance-at-a-Glance Fact Sheet
• Loan Assistance Tool

To file a Notice of Loss or ask questions about available programs, contact your local USDA Service Center.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.