South Central Reporter

State Rep. Blaine Wilhour (R-Beecher City) is urging area farmers to take advantage of an Illinois Department of Agriculture (IODA) program set to provide $5 million in business recovery grants available to qualifying individuals in the livestock industry.

Through the end of October, agricultural producers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic are eligible to apply.

“For most farmers, these grants aren’t enough to repair the damage caused to them by the coronavirus regulations on businesses and restaurants, but it could be the right amount of funds to help keep some operations afloat,” Wilhour said. “I encourage the livestock farmers in my area to look into this grant program to see if they qualify for one of the grants that could be anywhere up to $25,000.”

The grants are split into three groups: the swine depopulation program, the agriculture business interruption program, and the meat and poultry capacity program.

The swine program offers grants of up to $10,000 for depopulating and disposing of livestock. The agriculture program covers monetary losses and expenditures totaling as much as $10,000 for livestock producers who were forced to hold livestock or livestock-related products stemming from the pandemic over a month-long period beginning in mid-March. The meat and poultry program offers grants of up to $25,000 to cover operating and facility improvement costs associated with COVID-19 shutdowns or mitigating capacity reductions for businesses with 60 or fewer employees.

Online applications for grants are available and inquiries about the programs or the application can be emailed to agr.grants@illinois.gov.

Serving the 107th District since 2019, Wilhour is on the ballot next month, running against Democrat David Seiler.   

Wilhour has long expressed his concern about the impact he feels the lingering virus is having on the state’s condition. He’s been a frequent critic of Gov. J.B. Pritzker over what he considers to be his overreach in dealing with the crisis.

“Rules, otherwise known as laws, are the responsibility of the legislature,” he recently shared. “The governor has no right to circumvent our legal process. If he wants the mask mandate with associated penalties, then call the legislature back in and do it the right way. The rule of law, separation of powers and executive restraint are important, even in a pandemic.”