April 10, 2018
The Fiscal Year 2018 Federal Omnibus Spending Bill included provisions exempting farmers and ranchers from having to obtain System for Award Management (SAM) and Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) numbers to participate in conservation programs.
SAM and DUNS requirements act as a barrier to participating in Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS) programs and have resulted in farmers losing their current funding or being denied access to entry into the programs. Current law provided an exemption for “individuals,” but farms organized as a business entity were not eligible for the exemption.
Source – MN Farm Bureau