WEATHER Act of 2025

Protection against weather-related income loss: The bill seeks to develop a policy that insures against income losses caused by weather conditions such as high winds, excessive moisture, extreme heat, abnormal freezes, wildfires, hail, and drought (Section 2(a)(2)(A)(iii)(I)).

Broad geographic availability: Research and development for the covered policy must ensure coverage is available across all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and several U.S. territories (Section 2(a)(2)(B)(ii)).

Flexible coverage amounts: The policy research will consider allowing holders to buy-up to 150 percent or buy-down to 5 percent of the median county-level adjusted gross income for farms (Section 2(a)(2)(B)(iii)(I)).

Fast payment processing: Priority may be given to policies that ensure payments are made within 30 days after a covered weather condition occurs in the relevant county or an adjacent one (Section 2(a)(2)(B)(iv)(II)).

Support for specific farm types: The research may prioritize considerations for farm businesses with less than $350,000 in adjusted gross income or those with underserved producers (Section 2(a)(2)(B)(iv)(IV)).

Simplified administrative processes: The development of the policy may include provisions to reduce paperwork requirements for farmers (Section 2(a)(2)(B)(iv)(V)).

Exclusions from coverage: Certain items are explicitly excluded from being considered a "covered crop or commodity," which includes timber, forest products, animals for sport or show, and pets (Section 2(a)(2)(A)(i)).

Restrictions on adjusting coverage: A farmer's ability to "buy-up" their coverage is limited to those whose farms have at least 3 covered crops or commodities (Section 2(a)(2)(B)(iii)(II)).