U.S. Code > Title 7 Agriculture > CHAPTER 31—RURAL ELECTRIFICATION AND TELEPHONE SERVICE (§§ 901—950bb1) > SUBCHAPTER III—RURAL ELECTRIC AND TELEPHONE DIRECT LOAN PROGRAMS (§§ 930—940h) > § 940c-1. Guarantees for bonds and notes issued for electrification or telephone purposes

§ 940c-1. Guarantees for bonds and notes issued for electrification or telephone purposes

(a) In general
Subject to subsection (b) of this section, the Secretary shall guarantee payments on bonds or notes issued by cooperative or other lenders organized on a not-for-profit basis if the proceeds of the bonds or notes are used to make loans for any electrification or telephone purpose eligible for assistance under this chapter, including section 904 or 922 of this title or to refinance bonds or notes issued for such purposes.
(b) Limitations
(1) Outstanding loans
A lender shall not receive a guarantee under this section for a bond or note if, at the time of the guarantee, the total principal amount of such guaranteed bonds or notes outstanding of the lender would exceed the principal amount of outstanding loans of the lender for eligible electrification or telephone purposes consistent with this chapter.
(2) Generation of electricity
The Secretary shall not guarantee payment on a bond or note issued by a lender, the proceeds of which are used for the generation of electricity.
(3) Qualifications
The Secretary may deny the request of a lender for the guarantee of a bond or note under this section if the Secretary determines that—
(A) the lender does not have appropriate expertise or experience or is otherwise not qualified to make loans for electrification or telephone purposes;
(B) the bond or note issued by the lender would not be investment grade quality without a guarantee; or
(C) the lender has not provided to the Secretary a list of loan amounts approved by the lender that the lender certifies are for eligible purposes described in subsection (a) of this section.
(4) Annual amount
The total amount of guarantees provided by the Secretary under this section during a fiscal year shall not exceed $1,000,000,000, subject to the availability of funds under subsection (e).
(c) Fees
(1) In general
A lender that receives a guarantee issued under this section on a bond or note shall pay a fee to the Secretary.
(2) Amount
(A) In general
The amount of the annual fee paid for the guarantee of a bond or note under this section shall be equal to 30 basis points of the amount of the unpaid principal of the bond or note guaranteed under this section.
(B) Prohibition
Except as otherwise provided in this subsection and subsection (e)(2), no other fees shall be assessed.
(3) Payment
(A) In general
A lender shall pay the fees required under this subsection on a semiannual basis.
(B) Structured schedule
The Secretary shall, with the consent of the lender, structure the schedule for payment of the fee to ensure that sufficient funds are available to pay the subsidy costs for note or bond guarantees as provided for in subsection (e)(2).
(4) Rural economic development subaccount
Subject to subsection (e)(2) of this section, fees collected under this subsection shall be—
(A) deposited into the rural economic development subaccount maintained under section 940c (b)(2)(A) of this title, to remain available until expended; and
(B) used for the purposes described in section 940c (b)(2)(B) of this title.
(d) Guarantees
(1) In general
A guarantee issued under this section shall—
(A) be for the full amount of a bond or note, including the amount of principal, interest, and call premiums;
(B) be fully assignable and transferable; and
(C) represent the full faith and credit of the United States.
(2) Limitation
To ensure that the Secretary has the resources necessary to properly examine the proposed guarantees, the Secretary may limit the number of guarantees issued under this section to 5 per year.
(3) Department opinion
On the timely request of a lender, the General Counsel of the Department of Agriculture shall provide the Secretary with an opinion regarding the validity and authority of a guarantee issued to the lender under this section.
(e) Authorization of appropriations
(1) In general
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section.
(2) Fees
To the extent that the amount of funds appropriated for a fiscal year under paragraph (1) are not sufficient to carry out this section, the Secretary may use up to 1/3 of the fees collected under subsection (c) of this section for the cost of providing guarantees of bonds and notes under this section before depositing the remainder of the fees into the rural economic development subaccount maintained under section 940c (b)(2)(A) of this title.
(f) Termination
The authority provided under this section shall terminate on September 30, 2012.