From: SM.FPAC.BC.FOIA <SM.FP.FOIA@usda.gov>
Subject: Request 2026-FSA-02435-F - Bocinsky - Acknowledgement / Perfected
Date: January 23, 2026 at 10:49:14 AM MST
To: "kyle.bocinsky@umt.edu" <kyle.bocinsky@umt.edu>
Cc: "Nguyen, Hani - FPAC-FBC, MN" <hani.nguyen@usda.gov>, "Vander Linden, Christina - FPAC-FBC, MO" <christina.vanderlinden@usda.gov>, "Nagel, Carol - FPAC-FBC, ND" <carol.nagel@usda.gov>

Mr. Bocinsky,
 
This letter acknowledges receipt of your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request dated January 23, 2026, to the Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Production and Conservation Business Center (FPAC-BC).  Your request was received in this office on January 23, 2026, and assigned control number 2026-FSA-02435-F.  Please use this control number for all future communications regarding this request. 
 
You requested the following: This is a data-update to request 2025-FSA-04691-F. Data in the format delivered in response to that request is adequate and preferred. I would like tabular data of the county-level Normal Grazing Periods for Livestock Forage Disaster Program years 2008 – 2026. Normal grazing periods are defined in US code: “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” (7 CFR 1416.202). They are implicated in eligibility for several assistance programs administered the FSA, including the Livestock Forage Disaster Program. FSA Guidance 1-LFP Amend. 4 describes a process by which State FSA offices may adjust normal grazing periods annually, stipulating, “the grazing periods established for LFP must be the same as the grazing periods that have been established for NAP, and in accordance with the grazing period established in the NCT.” I would like the county-level tabular data of Normal Grazing Periods for past and current program years. These data should minimally include fields for: - FSA State - County Name - State & County Code - Program Year - Pasture Type - Start Date - End Date (Date Range for Record Search: From 1/1/2008 To 12/31/2026)
 
Your request is being handled under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552 (http://www.usdoj.gov/oip/amended-foia-redlined.pdf). 
 
We process requests on a first-in, first-out basis.  The actual processing time will depend upon the complexity of the request and whether or not it involves sensitive or voluminous records, or extensive searches and/or consultations.  We also process requests on a multi-track basis.  This means that simple requests, requiring minimal effort to respond, are processed in one track, and more voluminous and complex requests are processed in another track.  We have placed your request in the Simple track.
 
Request 2026-FSA-02435-Fis perfected and has been moved from pending into the Simple processing track.  This request has been placed in the “Educational Institution” Request Category and all fees will be waived.  It has been determined that payment of the fee by a non-profit group would not be in the interest of the FOIA program.
 
The estimated date upon which we expect to provide you the requested records is on or before: February 23, 2026.
 
If you have any questions regarding the processing of this request, please contact Government Information (GI) Specialist Hani Nguyen at 651-602-7848.  If GI Specialist Hani Nguyen is
not available, please contact GI Specialist Christina Vander Linden at 816-823-2669 or GI Specialist Carol Nagel at 651-602-7848.  We can also be reached at the group e-mail
address SM.FP.FOIA@usda.gov. 
Sincerely,
Patrick McLoughlin
Patrick McLoughlin
FOIA Officer
Farm Production and Conservation
 




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