§7555 ARMS Initiative loan guarantee program

Summary

The Secretary can run a loan guarantee program to encourage private companies to use eligible facilities. The program can guarantee part or all of a loan to start a commercial activity that uses those facilities. Guarantees can only be made if budget authority to cover their costs is provided in advance as required by section 504 of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661c). In any fiscal year, guaranteed loan principal may not exceed $20,000,000 for one borrower and $320,000,000 for all borrowers combined. The Secretary may hire other officials to help run the program. Those officials include the Administrator of the Small Business Administration and heads of relevant Department of Agriculture agencies (including the Farmers Home Administration and the Rural Development Administration). They may take applications, guarantee loans, and do other program work. They may guarantee loans to companies of any size, even if their other programs have size limits. They should use their usual processing steps when possible. The Secretary may give them money to run the program, and they may accept it.