The following definitions apply to this subpart and to the administration of ELAP. The definitions in parts 718 of this title and 1400 of this chapter also apply, except where they conflict with the definitions in this section.

Adult beef bull means a male beef breed bovine animal that was used for breeding purposes that was at least 2 years old before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Adult beef cow means a female beef breed bovine animal that had delivered one or more offspring before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition. A first-time bred beef heifer is also considered an adult beef cow if it was pregnant on or by the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Adult beefalo bull means a male hybrid of beef and bison that was used for breeding purposes and was at least 2 years old before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Adult beefalo cow means a female hybrid of beef and bison that had delivered one or more offspring before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition. A first-time bred beefalo heifer is also considered an adult beefalo cow if it was pregnant by the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Adult buffalo or bison bull means a male animal of those breeds that was used for breeding purposes and was at least 2 years old before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Adult buffalo or bison cow means a female animal of those breeds that had delivered one or more offspring before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition. A first-time bred buffalo or bison heifer is also considered an adult buffalo or bison cow if it was pregnant by the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Adult dairy bull means a male dairy breed bovine animal that was used primarily for breeding dairy cows and was at least 2 years old by the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Adult dairy cow means a female bovine dairy breed animal used for the purpose of providing milk for human consumption that had delivered one or more offspring by the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition. A first-time bred dairy heifer is also considered an adult dairy cow if it was pregnant by the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Agricultural operation means a farming operation.

All-milk price means the national average price received, per hundredweight of milk, by dairy operations for all milk sold to dairy plants and milk dealers in the United States, as determined by the Secretary.

APHIS means the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

Application means CCC or FSA form used to apply for either the emergency loss assistance for livestock or emergency loss assistance for farm-raised fish or honeybees.

Aquatic species means any species of aquatic organism grown as food for human consumption, fish raised as feed for fish that are consumed by humans, or ornamental fish propagated and reared in an aquatic medium by a commercial operator on private property in water in a controlled environment. Catfish and crawfish are both defined as aquatic species for ELAP. However, aquatic species do not include reptiles or amphibians.

Bait fish means small fish caught for use as bait to attract large predatory fish. For ELAP, it also must meet the definition of aquatic species and not be raised as food for fish; provided, however, that only bait fish produced in a controlled environment are eligible for payment under ELAP.

Blizzard means, as defined by the National Weather Service, a storm which contains large amounts of snow or blowing snow with winds in excess of 35 miles per hour and visibility of less than one-fourth of a mile for an extended period of time.

Buck means a male goat.

Cattle tick fever means a severe and often fatal disease that destroys red blood cells of cattle, commonly known as Texas or cattle fever, which is spread by Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) annulatus, and the southern cattle tick, R. (Boophilus) microplus.

Commercial use means used in the operation of a business activity engaged in as a means of livelihood for profit.

Contract means, with respect to contracts for the handling of livestock, a written agreement between a livestock owner and another individual or entity setting the specific terms, conditions, and obligations of the parties involved regarding the production of livestock or livestock products.

Eligible adverse weather means, as determined by the Deputy Administrator, an extreme and abnormal damaging weather event that is not expected to occur during the loss period, which results in eligible losses. The eligible adverse weather would have resulted in agricultural losses not covered by other programs in this part for which the Deputy Administrator determines financial assistance should be provided to producers. Adverse weather may include, but is not limited to, blizzard, eligible winter storms, and wildfires. Specific eligible adverse weather may vary based on the type of loss. Identification of eligible adverse weather will include locations (National, State, or county-level) and start and end dates.

Eligible drought means that any area of the county has been rated by the U.S. Drought Monitor as having D2 (severe drought) intensity for at least 8 consecutive weeks for the specific type of eligible grazing land or pastureland for the county, or D3 (extreme drought) or D4 (exceptional drought) intensity for the specific type of eligible grazing land or pastureland for the county, as determined by the Secretary:

(1) At any time during the program year, for additional honey bee feed loss;

(2) That directly impacts water availability at any time during the normal grazing period (for example, snow pack that feeds streams and springs), as determined by the Deputy Administrator or designee, for losses resulting from transporting water to livestock; or

(3) At any time during the normal grazing period, for losses resulting from the additional cost incurred to transport livestock feed or eligible livestock to feed, for additional mileage above normal.

Eligible grazing land means land that is native or improved pastureland with permanent vegetative cover or land planted to a crop planted specifically for the purpose of providing grazing for eligible livestock.

Eligible loss condition means a condition that would have resulted in agricultural losses not covered by other programs in this part for which the Deputy Administrator determines financial assistance needs to be provided to producers. Specific eligible loss conditions include, but are not limited to, disease (including cattle tick fever), insect infestation, and colony collapse disorder. Identification of eligible loss conditions will include locations (National, State, or county-level) and start and end dates. All other causes of losses are not covered, including, but not limited to, negligence, mismanagement, or wrongdoing by the producer.

Eligible winter storm means an event that is so severe as to directly cause loss and lasts in duration for at least 3 consecutive days and includes a combination of high winds, freezing rain or sleet, heavy snowfall, and extremely cold temperatures. The wind, precipitation, and extremely cold temperatures must occur during the consecutive 3-day period, with wind and extremely cold temperatures occurring in each of the 3 days.

Equine animal means a weaned domesticated horse, mule, or donkey.

Ewe means a female sheep.

Farming operation means a business enterprise engaged in producing agricultural products.

Farm-raised fish means any aquatic species that is propagated and reared in a controlled environment.

FSA means the Farm Service Agency.

Game or sport fish means fish pursued for sport by recreational anglers; provided, however, that only game or sport fish produced in a controlled environment can generate claims under ELAP.

Goat means a weaned domesticated, ruminant mammal of the genus Capra, including Angora goats.

Grazing animals mean those species of weaned livestock that, from a nutritional and physiological perspective, satisfy more than 50 percent of their net energy requirement through the consumption of growing forage grasses and legumes. Species of livestock for which more than 50 percent of their net energy requirements are not recommended to be met from consumption of forage grasses and legumes, such as poultry and swine, are excluded regardless of whether those species are grazing or are present on grazing land or pastureland. Unweaned livestock are not grazing animals regardless of whether those unweaned livestock are present on grazing land or pastureland.

Grazing loss means the value, as calculated in § 1416.110(g) or (m), of eligible grazing lost due to an eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition based on the number of days that the eligible livestock were not able to graze the eligible grazing land during the normal grazing period.

Herd means, for milk losses due to H5N1, one or more dairy cows that are under common ownership or supervision and are grouped on a single premises (lot, farm, or ranch) or multiple premises which are geographically separated but physically located in the same county.

H5N1 means Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (HPAI) H5N1 virus as either detected in milk and other bovine-origin samples associated with illness in dairy cattle, or, when pertaining to infection in cattle themselves, as confirmed by means of an H5N1 test.

H5N1 test means a test, as defined in the APHIS H5N1 case definition, on individual animal or bulk tank samples confirmed at NVSL.

Kid means a goat less than 1 year old.

Lamb means a sheep less than 1 year old.

Livestock owner means one having legal ownership of the livestock for which benefits are being requested during the 60 calendar days before the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition.

Nanny means a female goat.

Newborn livestock means livestock that are within 10 calendar days of the date of birth.

Non-adult beef cattle means a weaned beef breed bovine animal that on or before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition does not meet the definition of adult beef cow or bull.

Non-adult beefalo means a weaned hybrid of beef and bison that on or before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition does not meet the definition of adult beefalo cow or bull.

Non-adult buffalo or bison means a weaned animal of those breeds that on or before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or loss condition does not meet the definition of adult buffalo or adult bison cow or bull.

Non-adult dairy cattle means a weaned bovine animal of a breed used for the purpose of providing milk for human consumption that on or before the beginning date of the eligible adverse weather or eligible loss condition does not meet the definition of adult dairy cow or bull.

Normal grazing period means, as determined by FSA, with respect to a specific type of grazing land or pastureland in the county, the period during the calendar year when grazing animals receive daily nutrients and satisfy net energy requirements without supplemental feed.

Normal mortality means the numerical amount, computed by a percentage of expected honeybee colony and farm-raised fish deaths, by category, that normally occur during a program year for a producer, as established for the area by the FSA State Committee for farm-raised fish, and as established nationwide by the Deputy Administrator for honeybee colonies.

NVSL means the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories.

Positive H5N1 test collection date means the date of sample collection for a positive H5N1 test that is reported to an NVSL and indicated on the H5N1 test result.

Program year means for 2019 from October 1, 2018, through December 31, 2019; for 2020 and subsequent years, the program year is the same as the calendar year, January 1 through December 31.

Ram means a male sheep.

Reliable record means any non-verifiable record available that reasonably supports the eligible loss, as determined acceptable by the COC.

Sheep means a weaned domesticated, ruminant mammal of the genus Ovis.

U.S. Drought Monitor is a system for classifying drought severity according to a range of abnormally dry to exceptional drought. It is a collaborative effort between Federal and academic partners, produced on a weekly basis, to synthesize multiple indices, outlooks, and drought impacts on a map and in narrative form. This synthesis of indices is reported by the National Drought Mitigation Center at http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu. Should an eligible area not be covered by the U.S. Drought Monitor, the Deputy Administrator, in consultation with appropriate weather-related agencies and experts, will establish procedures for rating drought intensity using the same range of categories as the U.S. Drought Monitor and use this information in place of the missing data for eligibility purposes.

Unweaned livestock means an animal not weaned from mother's milk or milk replacement to other nourishment. For ELAP purposes, unweaned livestock does not include turkeys, ducks, chickens, and geese.

Verifiable record means a document provided by the producer that can be verified by the County Committee (COC) through an independent source.

[79 FR 21097, Apr. 14, 2014, as amended at 79 FR 57721, Sept. 26, 2014; 79 FR 74571, Dec. 15, 2014; 83 FR 49464, Oct. 2, 2018; 85 FR 10963, Feb. 26, 2020; 87 FR 19785, Apr. 6, 2022; 88 FR 1891, Jan. 11, 2023; 89 FR 54334, July 1, 2024]