§3243 Hispanic-serving agricultural colleges and universities

Summary

Creates a Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities endowment fund and says how it must be run. "Endowment fund" means that specific fund. The Secretary of the Treasury sets up the fund, can make needed agreements, and puts any money Congress gives and the interest it earns into the fund. The Treasury must invest the fund in U.S. interest-bearing obligations. The principal (corpus) cannot be spent. On September 30, 2008, and every September 30 after that, the Treasury must withdraw the fund’s income for the year and send it to the Secretary of Agriculture. After paying administration costs, 60% of that income is split among the colleges by their Hispanic student counts and 40% is split equally. Money provided under this part is considered a grant to create endowments. Congress may appropriate the sums needed each year. Each fiscal year starting in 2008, the Department of Agriculture may receive an amount equal to $80,000 times the number of these colleges. The Treasury pays that total equally to each college. These funds must be used like funds under the Second Morrill Act. The Agriculture Secretary also makes competitive grants for institutional capacity building (no building construction) and for research, extension, and training in agriculture, nutrition, food science, bioenergy, and environmental science. Applicants must show need, tried to get other funding, and provide a required non-Federal share. Congress may appropriate sums needed each year.