NCC Applauds USDA Action on 2026 Pima Cotton Trust Fund Payments

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The National Cotton Council (NCC) welcomes the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) recent announcement regarding payments under the 2026 Pima Agriculture Cotton Trust Fund and the 2026 Agriculture Wool Apparel Manufacturers Trust Fund.

“We appreciate USDA’s action to carry out the Pima Cotton Trust Fund as authorized,” said NCC Chairman Nathan Reed. “These payments provide important support for eligible manufacturers and for the use of Pima cotton in textile and apparel goods produced here in the United States.”

Established under Section 12314 of the 2014 Farm Bill, the Pima Cotton Trust Fund is authorized through 2031 and funded at $16 million annually through the Commodity Credit Corporation. The program is intended to reduce the economic injury to domestic manufacturers resulting from tariffs on cotton fabric that are higher than tariffs on certain apparel articles made from cotton fabric.

By law, payments under the Pima Cotton Trust Fund are distributed as follows:

• 25 percent to one or more nationally recognized associations established for the promotion of Pima cotton for use in textile and apparel goods;
• 25 percent to yarn spinners of Pima cotton that produce ring-spun cotton yarns in the United States; and
• 50 percent to manufacturers that cut and sew cotton shirts in the United States and certify that they used imported cotton fabric in the preceding year.

March 15 of each year is the application deadline for the Pima Cotton Trust, and the law mandates trust payments by April 15 through 2031. Additional information on these programs is available at www.fas.usda.gov/programs.