Changes Are Needed To Assure Accurate and Valid Wheat Deficiency Payments
RCED-83-50
Published: Mar 29, 1983. Publicly Released: Mar 29, 1983.
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Highlights
GAO reviewed the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) system for making deficiency payments to wheat farmers. These payments are designed to supplement eligible wheat farmers' income in the years when wheat prices are low.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Agriculture | The Secretary of Agriculture should direct the Administrator of the Statistical Reporting Service to adopt procedures to: (1) institute a system of quality control for the prices-received survey as suggested by the 1980 statisticians' report; (2) convey to enumerators the need for them to perform their job correctly and follow up to ensure that they do; (3) provide to each state a standard survey questionnaire with reporting instructions to eliminate possible reporting bias resulting from differing instructions and that clearly explain the purpose and importance of the survey; and (4) institute a follow-up program to obtain missing reports of quantities sold and amounts paid from grain buyers who were unable to provide requested data during the reported month; this would allow grain buyers more time to report accurate data and eliminate the need for using estimated average prices to compute the estimated average market price. |
USDA implemented a new quality control system, Edit and Summary, which includes standardized survey questionnaires.
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| Department of Agriculture | The Secretary of Agriculture should direct the Administrator of the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) to: (1) develop an acceptable adjustment for the deficiency payment program that properly accounts for the unharvested acreage on which payments are made; and (2) conduct a comprehensive analysis of the crop yield distributions to determine the extent to which program yields are inadequately assigned and develop crop yield frequency distributions for counties or similar areas to assist county committees in assigning yields to individual farms. |
ASCS revised regulations to require a review of unharvested acreage to adjust yields. GAO made more comprehensive recommendations on ASCS yields in RCED-86-118.
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Topics
Data integrityFarm income stabilization programsGrain and grain productsMathematical analysisOverpaymentsPricing surveysProgram evaluationStatistical dataUnderpaymentsData errors