§1936c Relending program to resolve ownership and succession on farmland

Summary

The Secretary may make loans to certain organizations so those organizations can relend money to help heirs who own land together sort out ownership and plan for who will run the farm next. The loans must be used for projects that resolve shared ownership and succession on farmland with multiple owners. Eligible organizations are cooperatives, credit unions, or nonprofits that are certified to operate as lenders, have experience helping socially disadvantaged, limited-resource, or new farmers and rural businesses, and can show they will repay the loan. Preference goes to groups with at least 10 years’ experience with socially disadvantaged farmers and to groups in States that adopted the 2010 Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act and lend to heirs-property owners. The Secretary sets the interest rate for intermediaries. Intermediaries set borrower rates to cover fund costs and must disclose them publicly. Borrowers must complete a succession plan to get a loan and may borrow money to pay for that plan and related legal and closing costs. The Secretary had to report on the program within one year after December 20, 2018 to the House and Senate Agriculture Committees. Congress authorized $10,000,000 each year for fiscal years 2019 through 2023.