Farmers gathered at Albert Lea High School Wednesday to figure out how the new farm bill passed by Congress would work.

The meeting was organized by the Minnesota Corn Growers Association.

Under the new farm bill, farmers will be paid direct payments of 28 cents per bushel for corn and 44 cents for soybeans. Counter-cyclical payments will be added when the sum of the market price and direct payment subsidy would fall below the target price that is set at $2.60 for corn and $5.80 for soybeans.

Program Manager Warren Formo explained that the subsidy would be based on yields between 1998 and 2001. Farmers need to submit documentation that proves the yields.

The law limits the annual payment per individual to $180,000: $40,000 in direct payments, $65,000 in counter-cyclical payments and $75,000 in

loans. But by registering other entities including spouses, farmers can double the total limit.

About 40 percent of farmers’ income comes from the federal government, according to Gary Pestrorios, board member of MCGA from Albert Lea Township. &uot;We don’t want any farmers in Freeborn County to miss the government dollar,&uot; Pestorious said.

The MCGA developed a Web site where farmers can calculate the subsidy amount by entering their data. The address is www.mncorn.org.

A database developed by the Environmental Working Group, a non-profit environmental organization, shows that 1,539 Freeborn County farmers have received $123,269,853 in federal subsidies through the previous subsidy program between 1996 and 2001. The biggest recipient was Sunset Farms in Albert Lea with $1,465,889.10. A comprehensive list of federal subsidy beneficiaries is available at www.ewg.org.