"From the vineyards of the Finger Lakes to the orchards of the Capital Region, family owned farms are the backbone of Upstate New York's agriculture economy. But this past May they suffered from one of the most devastating deep freezes in recent memory, destroying thousands of acres of crops. I personally called Secretary Vilsack to emphasize how important a federal disaster designation is to providing critical relief to our Upstate growers, and now help is on the way. I sincerely thank the USDA and Secretary Vilsack for heeding our calls and swiftly providing these growers with a Secretarial disaster designation to unlock these critical emergency relief funds, and I will continue to fight to deliver all of the federal support needed to impacted vineyards and orchards across Upstate NY."