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Jefferson County, AR

Cattle prices near Jefferson County, Arkansas. The closest sale barn with a recent report is Searcy AR in Searcy, AR, about 68 miles away. On Nov 10, 5-weight steers (500–599 lb) averaged $389.79 per hundredweight on 38 head (USDA). Check a bid against your own costs with Ring Price.

Check a bid with Ring Price

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CRP emergency haying & grazing: Jefferson County is on FSA's list (since Sep 1, 2026). Check with your FSA county office first. Details · FSA list as of Nov 5, 2026.
Drought ExceptionalD4 · most of county Drought pay (LFP) Eligibleup to 4 payments Burn ban Checkcall the county Searcy AR 5-wt steers $390▼ $6 since last sale

Jefferson County rain, outlook and forecast

Most of Jefferson County, AR was in exceptional drought (D4) on the Nov 10 U.S. Drought Monitor map; some part has been in severe drought (D2) or worse for 44 straight weeks. Rain has run 27% of normal over the last 30 days (well below normal); the 6-10 day outlook for Nov 20–24 leans wetter than normal (33% chance of above-normal rain) and the best rain chance this week is 25% on Saturday (high 75°). FSA's 2026 LFP list includes Jefferson County with up to 4 monthly payments, and Searcy AR is the closest USDA-reported sale barn at 68 miles.

Rain vs normal

  • Last 30 days 27% of normal
  • Last 60 days 16% of normal
  • Last 90 days not read yet

NOAA river forecast center rain (radar plus gauges) at the county center, Nov 15, 2026. Source.

Rain outlook

  • 6-10 day outlook (Nov 20–24) Leans wetter than normal (33% chance of above-normal rain)
  • 8-14 day outlook (Nov 22–28) Leans toward near-normal rain

NOAA Climate Prediction Center precipitation outlook, issued Nov 14, 2026. Source.

Next 7 days

  1. Today Mostly Sunny, high 59°, low 37°, 2% rain, wind 5–10 mph
  2. Monday Sunny, high 62°, low 32°, 0% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  3. Tuesday Sunny, high 64°, low 36°, 0% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  4. Wednesday Sunny, high 69°, low 43°, 0% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  5. Thursday Mostly Sunny, high 72°, low 46°, 2% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  6. Friday Sunny, high 74°, low 47°, 1% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  7. Saturday Sunny, high 75°, low 50°, 25% rain, wind 5–10 mph

National Weather Service forecast for the county center, updated Nov 15, 2026. Wind, warnings and burn bans.

PRF pasture insurance: sign up by Dec 1, 2026

The 2027 Pasture, Rangeland, Forage (PRF) insurance sales closing date for Jefferson County is Dec 1, 2026, 16 days from today. PRF (Rainfall Index) pays on a rainfall index for your grid, not on your own rain gauge. You buy it through a crop insurance agent.

How PRF works · PRF 2027 sign-up · Find your grid on RMA's PRF tool

Date from USDA RMA's actuarial data, read Aug 28, 2026 · RMA dates map. Your agent confirms the date for your policy.

Jefferson County grass production

In 2025, grassland and pasture in Jefferson County grew about 2,366 pounds per acre of grass and forbs, 159% of the county's 1991-2020 normal of 1,486 pounds per acre. That was the 1st best of 40 years on record (1986-2025). Best year: 2025 at 2,366 pounds per acre; worst: 1986 at 1,002.

Pounds per acre of new grass and forbs each year on rangeland and pasture, from the Rangeland Analysis Platform (satellite-based estimates). See every year on the Land tab.

Open loss windows 1 open

What happenedStartedTell FSA early byFSA deadline
Exceptional drought (D4) reached (U.S. Drought Monitor) Oct 20, 2026Nov 19, 2026 (4 days left)Mar 1, 2027

If this cost you livestock, extra feed or hauled water, call your county FSA office now, while it's fresh. The 30-day date is a suggestion from Cownty; FSA's deadline for the notice of loss and application is the March 1 date. Log it in your Drought Ledger · Find your FSA office and phone

Text YES CLOCK for a reminder on day 21 and day 28.

Information only; not financial, tax or legal advice. FSA decides eligibility. Cownty sends nothing to FSA.

Drought-sale tax flag IRS list

Jefferson County is on IRS Notice 2026-54 (severe or worse drought, Sep 1, 2025 to Aug 31, 2026).

Why it matters: if you sold breeding, dairy or draft livestock because of drought, the tax code may let you put off the gain (more time to buy replacement animals, or report the extra-sale income a year later). Your tax preparer decides whether either applies.

Work out your numbers and print a page for your preparer

Information only; not financial, tax or legal advice. Ask your tax preparer. FSA decides program eligibility. IRS Notice 2026-54 (PDF)

Next 7 days · National Weather Service

Weather for Jefferson County

Forecast for the center point of Jefferson County.

  • Freeze on 1 night
  1. Today Mostly Sunny 59° 37° E 5–10 mph 2% rain
  2. Mon Sunny 62° 32° NE 0–5 mph 0% rain
  3. Tue Sunny 64° 36° ENE 0–5 mph 0% rain
  4. Wed Sunny 69° 43° SE 0–5 mph 0% rain
  5. Thu Mostly Sunny 72° 46° SE 0–5 mph 2% rain
  6. Fri Sunny 74° 47° SE 0–5 mph 1% rain
  7. Sat Sunny 75° 50° S 5–10 mph 25% rain

Forecast from the National Weather Service, updated Nov 15, 2026. Wind arrows point where the wind is going; the letters say where it comes from. Windy = 25 mph or more; freeze = a low of 32°F or less. Open the full forecast.

Burn ban

Data pending. Cownty doesn't read an official statewide burn-ban list for Arkansas; county commissions, sheriffs and fire districts post local fire restrictions, so check your county's own notices

No official ban list to check here, so Cownty shows the National Weather Service fire-weather alerts for the county instead: none right now.

Guide: Burn bans: where to check and what they mean

Weather warnings right now

None right now

National Weather Service active alerts for this county, as of Nov 15, 2026 (source). Fetched Nov 15, 2026.

Rainfall vs normal

Oct 2026
0.28 in 6% of normal
Last 12 months
29.56 in 56%
How to read this

Bars are the rain that fell each month; the dashed line is a normal month (1991-2020 average). Bars below the line = drier than normal.

County-average precipitation, Nov 2025 to Oct 2026. Normal = NCEI's own 1991-2020 average for each month (Oct 2026 normal 4.44 in; same month last year 3.45 in). NCEI posts each month around the 8th of the next and may revise recent months. Source: NOAA NCEI Climate at a Glance. Fetched Nov 14, 2026.

Wildfires

No current fire perimeter in the county

No current perimeter within 100 mi of the county center (48 mapped nationally).

See the fire map

Interagency fire outlines. Small or brand-new fires are often not mapped yet; call 911 for a fire you can see. Layer updated Nov 15, 2026. Source: National Interagency Fire Center. Fetched Nov 15, 2026.

Frost dates

Frost and freeze dates

30-year averages (1991–2020) from the weather stations nearest Jefferson County. Frost = 32°F; hard freeze = 28°F.

Pine Bluff weather station (6 mi away)

Typical last spring frostTypical first fall frost
Frost (32°F)
245-day growing season
 Mar 14
1 year in 10 it's after Apr 2
 Nov 16
1 year in 10 it's before Oct 31
Hard freeze (28°F)
270-day growing season
 Mar 4
1 year in 10 it's after Mar 19
 Nov 29
1 year in 10 it's before Nov 9

Pine Bluff Grider Fld weather station (7 mi away)

Typical last spring frostTypical first fall frost
Frost (32°F)
243-day growing season
 Mar 13
1 year in 10 it's after Apr 1
 Nov 13
1 year in 10 it's before Oct 28
Hard freeze (28°F)
270-day growing season
 Feb 28
1 year in 10 it's after Mar 20
 Nov 26
1 year in 10 it's before Nov 7

Source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Pine Bluff, Pine Bluff Grider Fld), NOAA files as of Jun 27, 2023. Fetched Nov 11, 2026.

Text me Jefferson County changes

Nearest USDA-reported sale barns

  1. Arkansas Cattle Auction LLC Searcy, AR 68 mi · sells Tuesdays · latest USDA report Nov 10, 2026
  2. Cleburne County Livestock Heber Springs, AR 85 mi · sells Mondays · latest USDA report Nov 9, 2026
  3. Hope Livestock Auction Hope, AR 104 mi · sells Thursdays · latest USDA report Nov 12, 2026
  4. Lipscomb Brothers Livestock Como, MS 115 mi · sells Wednesdays · latest USDA report Nov 11, 2026
  5. Glenwild Stockyard Inc. Grenada, MS 126 mi · sells Mondays · latest USDA report Nov 9, 2026

Miles are straight-line from the county center. Sale days come from the barns' recent USDA AMS reports; call the barn to confirm. All barns

Printable county brief (PDF) · Everything on one page · Nearest USDA hay reports (none for Arkansas): Missouri, Oklahoma

Common questions and nearby counties

Is Jefferson County eligible for LFP in 2026?

Yes. Jefferson County is on FSA's 2026 Livestock Forage Disaster Program county list, with up to 4 monthly payments for some pasture types. FSA decides each operation's eligibility; apply at your county FSA office by March 1 after the loss year.

Source: FSA LFP county file of Nov 5, 2026

What is the drought level in Jefferson County this week?

On the Drought Monitor map of Nov 10, 2026, most of Jefferson County was in exceptional drought (D4), and the worst part was exceptional drought (D4) on 100% of the county. 44 straight weeks with some severe drought (D2) or worse.

Source: U.S. Drought Monitor, map of Nov 10, 2026

Is there a burn ban in Jefferson County?

No official statewide list to check: Cownty doesn't read an official statewide burn-ban list for Arkansas; county commissions, sheriffs and fire districts post local fire restrictions, so check your county's own notices.

What sale barns are near Jefferson County?

The nearest USDA-reported sale barns: Searcy AR (68 mi), last report Nov 10, 2026; Heber Springs AR (85 mi), last report Nov 9, 2026; Hope (104 mi), last report Nov 12, 2026.

Source: USDA AMS Market News reports

What are the upcoming FSA and farm deadlines?

Next: Nov 20, 2026: Apply for NRCS conservation cost-share (EQIP, CSP, ACEP) to be considered for 2027 money; Nov 20, 2026: Micro Farm 2027: last day to buy crop insurance. FSA program dates not posted officially are marked "confirm at source" on the calendar.

Source: official agency pages (see Calendar)

Information only; not financial or legal advice. FSA decides eligibility. Always check the linked official source.