Republicans are now pushing the Temperature Endorsement for Multi-Peril Policies (TEMP) Act. The bill supports the research and development of a crop insurance policy to cover losses caused by cold exposure and freezes.
The legislation comes in response to Florida's speciality crop users not being able to properly access comprehensive whole-farm crop insurance due to high insurance premiums, which cost thousands of dollars per acre. Previously, these crop growers have been able to attain insurance for natural impacts like wind at a low cost. But no policy exists to cover specialty crop growers caused by cold exposure and freezes.
One of the bill's sponsors US Rep. Laurel Lee (R-FL) stated, "Florida is home to countless agriculture producers and specialty crop growers who play an instrumental role in ensuring America’s food supply remains strong and resilient. During harsh winters, it can be especially difficult for specialty crop farmers to recover from the impacts of freezes and cold exposure. This bipartisan bill would relieve tremendous uncertainty and deliver necessary stability for Florida’s growers."
"Our bipartisan bill creates an affordable index temperature policy, providing much-needed stability and coverage for Florida’s more than 300 specialty crops should temperatures drop below freezing." Stated bill sponsor US Rep. Scott Franklin (R-FL) "I thank my colleagues for their support of this commonsense initiative and Sen. Rubio for his leadership on this issue in the Senate."
