(a) Each eligible producer on a farm may enroll in an ARC or PLC contract, as applicable, and receive assistance and payments determined to be fair and equitable as agreed to by all the producers on the farm and approved by the county committee.

(b) When required by FSA, each person or legal entity leasing a farm who enrolls in ARC or PLC must provide a copy of their written lease to the county committee and, in the absence of a written lease, must provide to the county committee a complete written description of the terms and conditions of any oral agreement or lease.

(1) If a farm is cash leased (that is, the landowner receives a zero share of covered commodities planted on the farm or a zero share of any base acres) and the producers on the farm cash leased the farm in the immediately preceding year, then the tenant(s) who enters a producer signature and has a share greater than zero on the contract, if the same was true for the immediately preceding year, is considered to have satisfied ARC and PLC Program requirements of landowner(s) signing to a zero share on the contract The evidence must have been submitted for the immediately preceding contract year or was referred to in that contract year to an immediately preceding contract year.

(2) When required by FSA, an owner's or landlord's signature affirming a zero share on either an application for assistance or contract under this part, as applicable, may be accepted as evidence of a cash lease between the owner or landlord and tenant.

(3) For the purposes of obtaining payments under this part, the signature or signatures, if entered on the contract to satisfy the requirement of furnishing a written lease, are required to be provided by the enrollment deadline established by CCC for the assistance or payment.

(c) When land on which base acres is leased on a share basis, neither the landlord nor the tenant is eligible to receive 100 percent of the ARC or PLC contract payment for the farm.

(d) CCC will approve an ARC or PLC contract for enrollment and approve the division of payment when CCC is satisfied and determines that all of the following apply:

(1) The landlords, tenants, and sharecroppers sign the contract and agree to the payment shares shown on the contract;

(2) The interests of tenants and sharecroppers are being protected; and

(3) The payment shares shown on the application or contract do not circumvent either the provisions of this part or the provisions of part 1400 of this chapter.

(4) If any civil dispute between persons, legal entities, or members of legal entities not involving FSA or CCC is known or suspected to exist that either FSA or CCC believes might impact the eligibility of any person or legal entity or administration of ARC or PLC under this part, the Deputy Administrator can elect to withhold making any determination on an application or contract until such time as the Deputy Administrator is satisfied that the dispute is resolved or no longer has any bearing on either the administration of ARC or PLC under this part or any eligible producer or potential eligible producer. A decision withheld under to this paragraph will not be construed to be a decision or adverse decision under any law or regulation nor will it be construed to be a failure of FSA or CCC to act under any law or regulation.

(e) A lease will be considered to be a cash lease if the lease provides for only a guaranteed cash payment for a specified amount, or a fixed quantity of the crop (for example, pounds, or bushels per acre).

(1) If a lease contains provisions that require the payment of rent on the basis of the amount of crop produced or the proceeds derived from the crop, or the interest such producer would have had if the crop had been produced, or combination thereof, the agreement will be considered to be a share lease.

(2) If a lease provides for a guaranteed amount and a share of the crop or crop proceeds, the agreement will be considered a cash lease.

(3) If the lease is a cash lease, the landlord is not eligible for assistance or payments under this part. The leasing of grazing or haying privileges is not considered cash leasing.

(f) Shares of PLC and ARC-CO will be determined based on the shares entered on the contract. Shares of ARC-IC payments will be determined based on the shares recorded on the report of acreage filed as specified in §1412.66. Further, each eligible producer having a share of planted or eligible subsequently planted crop acreage of covered commodities on a farm enrolled under an ARC or PLC Program contract has to do both of the following to be eligible for their share of a payment:

(1) Unless otherwise already enrolled on the ARC or PLC Program contract, sign the ARC or PLC Program contract during the contract period; and

(2) Have the producer's share recorded on the report of acreage filed as required by part 718 of this title and §1412.66.

(g) In a case where a producer has failed to sign an ARC or PLC Program contract by the signup deadline or contract period established for enrollment and participation for the producer's reported share of P&CP acres or eligible subsequently planted crop acreage of covered commodities on a farm enrolled as specified in this part, that producer's share will not receive any consideration for payment and will not generate any payment to the producer or to any other producer on the farm.

(h) FSA's approval of an ARC or PLC contract or shares under this part on behalf of CCC based on the representations of persons or legal entities signing the ARC or PLC contract, or acreage report in no way implies or will be construed as FSA's determination that the representations or assertions made by persons or legal entities signing the ARC or PLC contract, or acreage report are correct or are approved as legitimate. Any and all assertions and representations of a person, persons, legal entity, or legal entities signing forms, applications, or contracts incidental to program participation in this part are always subject to review and scrutiny or spot check by CCC. On CCC's behalf, FSA can at any time demand documentation to substantiate any representation made by any program participant under this part and recover unearned amounts that are determined to have been paid based on such erroneous representation.

[79 FR 46339, Aug. 8, 2014, as amended at 79 FR 57720, Sept. 26, 2014; 83 FR 40659, Aug. 16, 2018; 84 FR 45894, Sept. 3, 2019]