Federal judge halts disaster aid program for minority farmers

A federal judge in Texas has blocked an Agriculture Department disaster relief program from giving preferences to minority and female farmers, siding with a group of plaintiffs who allege that the program illegally discriminates against White male farmers.

In an order filed Friday in the Northern District of Texas, Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk found that the program probably violated the plaintiff’s equal protection rights under the Constitution. Kacsmaryk, appointed by President Donald Trump, wrote that the Department of Agriculture is enjoined from providing relief to farmers based on its “socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher” designation, which he said funneled a greater share of aid to farmers identifying as Black, American Indian, Latino, Asian and Pacific Islanders, as well as women.

The program also lacked congressional authority to operate on the basis of race and sex, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The injunction comes after a pair of judges in June 2021 blocked a Biden administration program that provided debt relief to farmers of color. Congress subsequently altered the program after those court orders, granting relief based on economic need instead of race.

“America’s farmers have been mistreated by this Administration for years now with one discriminatory scheme after another,” said Braden Boucek, vice president of litigation at the Southeastern Legal Foundation, which is representing the plaintiffs. “This ruling is a win for equality across the country, and we are proud to stand beside these farmers in holding the government accountable.”

The injunction in the latest legal blow against government programs that give preferences to women and minorities amid a wave of legal challenges to diversity programs spanning the private and public sectors. In March, a Texas judge ordered a 55-year-old federal agency tasked with helping minority-owned businesses access capital and government contracts to open its doors to all races. And last summer, a federal judge ordered that a Small Business Administration program created to help minority-owned businesses access government contracts serve all races, prompting the agency to require applicants to justify their social disadvantage through essays.

Many of the lawsuits and court orders have come after the Supreme Court overturned race-conscious college admissions last June.

USDA did not immediately respond for comment.

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Федеральный суд фермер меньшинство бедствие программа помощь Министерство сельского хозяйства остановка жалобник облегчение