USDA is offering soybean producers the opportunity to request a referendum on the Soybean Promotion and Research Order as authorized under the Soybean Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act.

The request for referendum will be conducted at Farm Service Agency county offices. To be eligible to participate, producers must certify and provide documentation that shows that they produced soybeans and paid an assessment on the soybeans during the period of Jan. 1, 2002, through Dec. 31, 2003. Only those producers who desire a referendum on the order will participate.

Beginning May 3, 2004, and continuing through May 28, 2004, producers may obtain a form to request a referendum from the county office staff either in person or by sending a request by mail or fax. Forms may also be obtained from www.ams.usda.gov/lsg/mpb/rpsoy.htm.

Individual producers and other producer entities may request a referendum at the county officer where their administrative farm records are maintained. For the producer not participating in FSA programs, the opportunity to request a referendum will be provided at the County FSA Office where the producer owns or rents land.

Mail-in requests must be postmarked by May 28 and received in the county's office by June 7. All other requests made by fax or in person must be received in the county office by May 28.

USDA will conduct a referendum on the order if at least 10 percent of the 663,880 soybean producers request a referendum, provided that no more than one-fifth be producers from one state.

The request for referendum is mandated by the act. The act requires that the secretary of agriculture conduct a request for referendum every five years after the initial referendum, which was conducted in 1994.

May 31 normally is the final availability date for marketing assistance loans for 2003 crop year corn and soybeans. However, since Memorial Day falls on May 31 this year, the final availability date will be June 1. Contact the office for more information.

The Farm Service Agency has launched a new Web tool to help producers track their participation in farm programs. The new customer statement tool allows producers to view participation and application status for conservation programs, program payments, farm loan information, and more.Access to the customer statement is available to all USDA customers. In order to insure personal identity, a producer must first register online for a USDA ID. The online process creates a user ID and password confirming an e-mail address. The ID will be an important identifier as USDA begins to link more customer data from agencies across the department.To view a customer statement, visit www.usda.gov and click on the customer service button.

Farms that have a corn, soybean, wheat, oats or barley acreage base may want to visit or contact the office now - before the spring rush starts on the farm - and enroll in the Direct and Counter-cyclical Program.The deadline for DCP is June 1. After that a $100 fee per farm contract will apply. May is a busy month on most farms. Why waste a good planting day to visit the FSA office? Save yourself time by contacting the office in advance.DCP requires an annual enrollment. Some of the other program provisions are as follows:Planting flexibility: Any crop may be planted on base acres enrolled in DCP except fruits and vegetables. Acre-for-acre payment reductions will apply to fruit and vegetable violations.Idle acreage: Weeds must be controlled and the idled ground maintained on DCP contract acres.Conservation compliance: Operators must certify that they are following a conservation plan approved by NRCS for every farm that they operate whether or not it is a participating farm.Acreage reports: They must be given annually for all cropland on the farm. The deadline for filing an acreage report for small grains is June 15, and coarse grains, fruit, vegetable and hay by July 15.Signature requirements: All producers on a farm must sign the contract and agree to the shares before the contract can be approved. The signature requirements must also be met by the appropriate deadlines for successions-in-interest and reconstitutions.Luke Fritz is executive director of the Butler County Farm Service Agency.