Tomorrow 8/1 is the last day to file for 2012 & 2013 losses! you have till nov 1 to file for 2014 (which was winter 2013-14)
I was at my local FSA (farm service agency) eg USDA office to get paperwork to file for losses for 2012, 2013, 2014.
They are paying flat fees. Roughly $80 per "colony" and $220 per "hive". Its more than a bit unclear as to what they define as colony and hive, I was told to fill out colony as the physical bees, and hive as the "structure they live in".
Your eligible for reimbursement over 17.5% loss on colonies. (ie if you had 100 colonies in fall 2013, and spring 2014 you had 85, you would be ineligible for reimbursement as "normal mortality rate for honeybee colonies is 17.5%") if you lost 19, you could get paid for the last 2. etc.
Hives listed a 75% loss rate. (get paid for anything over 75% loss)
You could also file for feed loss due to "an eligible adverse weather or loss condition". EG your tank of HFCS was damaged in storm, or washed away in a flood etc.
FYI There is a LOT ... i mean a LOT of paperwork to file if you want to put into the system. If your like most beeks and keep bees on some other farm location, you are required to record those farm ID numbers, Which means you need to be added to the "system" as an "other producer" on that farm plot. So if you had 10 outyards, youll need to have the farm ID numbers for all those outyards, and have those "farmers" call and make shure your listed on there farm ID as an "other producer"
If you only kept bees on your own property/farm, its much less complicated.
Dont forget your CCC-941 form that says you dont make more than $900,000 else you might not get any subsidies. (yeh, i get to give permission for the CCC request tax info from the IRS in support of the above statement, that i dont make more than 900K)