Title 7 › Chapter CHAPTER 31— - RURAL ELECTRIFICATION AND TELEPHONE SERVICE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - RURAL ELECTRIFICATION › § 904
The Secretary may make loans to people, companies, states, territories, local governments, people’s utility districts, and nonprofit or limited‑dividend cooperatives. The loans pay for building or running power plants, and electric transmission and distribution lines or systems to serve or improve electricity in rural areas. They can also help with programs for saving energy, demand management, and on‑ or off‑grid renewable systems. Loans from funds under section 903 can help cooperatives and towns repay or refinance long‑term debts they owe to the Tennessee Valley Authority for rural transmission or distribution lines. The Secretary must give preference to projects that meet the chapter’s rules. The Secretary sets loan terms, decides how the money may be used, and requires adequate security. Loans may be repaid from income. Any loan for building or changing a generating plant needs permission from the State authority in charge. Direct hardship loans follow the terms in section 935(c)(1). Other direct loans charge interest equal to the government’s current cost for similar loans plus 1/8 of 1 percent. The Secretary must find the security reasonable and certify the loan will be repaid on time.
Full Legal Text
Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Legislative History
Reference
Citation
7 U.S.C. § 904
Title 7 — Agriculture
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73