1. United States Department of Agriculture
Rural Development
Michael B. Canales
Director, Community Programs
USDA Rural Development, Texas
Making a difference Everyday
Everyway. . .
2. Did you know that an ENTIRE community can
be built with funding from ONE Agency?
“How can this be possible?”
Let us SHOW you what WE CAN DO!
3. Community Facilities Programs
Programs designed to develop essential
community facilities and services for public
use in rural areas.
Schools, libraries, child care, hospitals, clinics,
assisted living facilities, fire and rescue
stations, police stations, community centers,
public building, etc.
4. Community Facilities Direct Loan Program
Applicant and Project eligibility are the same as the
Guaranteed Loan program
Municipal Entity
Broadly Based Non-Profit
Federally Recognized Tribal Entity
Located in a rural area with a population of 20,000 or
less
5. Grants
• Grant percentage determined by:
- Population
- Income
• Maximum grant allowed is 75% of total project cost,
if eligible
- Grant funds from all Federal sources
cannot exceed 75% of project cost
• Average grant amount $45,000
6. How Can Funds Be Used?
Eligible Loan Purposes
Purchase real estate and improvements (i.e. buildings)
Construction, expansion, renovation, and/or
improvements to essential community facilities
Purchase of vehicles and major equipment
Purchase an existing facility when necessary to
improve or to prevent a loss of service
7. How Can Funds Be Used?
Eligible Loan Purposes
Refinancing debts incurred by, or on behalf of, an
applicant when all of the following conditions exist:
•debts being refinanced are a secondary part of the
total loan, (less than 50 percent);
•debts were incurred for the facility;
•arrangements cannot be made with creditors to
extend or modify terms in order to cash flow.
8. Rates and Terms
Direct loans
Three levels of fixed interest rates
Poverty, intermediate, market
Guaranteed loans
Lender’s customary rate for similar projects
May be fixed or variable
Maximum 40-year term or useful life of facility – subject to
State law or organizational structure
9. Lender Benefits
•90% guarantee in the event of a loss
•A reduction in capitalization requirements
•Loan may be sold on the secondary market
•Lender’s own documents
•No loan limit
•Short approval time
11. Program Objectives
* Develop infrastructure in rural communities which
promote rural economic development and improve
public health, safety and overall quality of life.
* Provide affordable financial assistance to rural areas
and towns to develop water supply, sewage,
stormwater, and solid waste disposal systems.
12. Water and Waste Disposal
Programs
• Water and Waste Disposal (WWD) Loans
and Grants
• Water and Waste Facility Loans and
Grants to Alleviate Health Risks (Section
306C Program)
• Emergency Community Water Assistance
Grants (ECWAG)
14. Eligible Applicants
• Must serve rural areas
Cities, towns, or unincorporated areas that have a
population of 10,000 or less inhabitants.*
Eligible facilities must serve rural areas only.
WWD loans and grants must finance only the portion
of facilities serving rural areas, but the facilities may
be located in non-rural areas.
*based on 2000 Census data for Texas
15. Types of Eligible Facilities
Water Waste
Wells Wastewater
treatment plants
Water supplies
Sewer collection
Water distribution lines
lines
Water storage tanks
Collection tanks
Water testing equipment
Monitoring
Computers equipment
Buildings Effluent
16. Types of Eligible Facilities
Solid Waste Disposal Storm Wastewater
Landfills Disposal
Incinerators Collection layout
Liners for line
improvements
Holding ponds
Pumping stations
Recycling equipment
Storage
Treatment
Line
improvements
17. Grant Eligibility Factors
Median Household Income (MHI) of service area
MHI must be less than 80% of the state non-
metropolitan MHI ($32,682*) to qualify for up to 75%
grant and/or the poverty rate of interest.
MHI must be less than the state non-metropolitan
MHI for the state ($40,853*) to qualify for up to 45%
grant and the intermediate rate of interest.
If MHI exceeds state non-metropolitan MHI
($40,853*) applicant qualifies for market rate of
interest … no grant consideration.
*based on 2000 Census data for Texas
18. Grant Eligibility Factors
Comparable System Costs
Grant assistance may not be used to lower the
user cost of the service below that provided by
similar systems.
Availability of Funds
Even though an applicant may meet all the
requirements for a grant, the actual grant they
receive may be limited by the amount of funds
available from the WWD allocation, the amount of
cash on hand, or the amount of funding from other
sources that is available for use in the project.
20. How To Learn More About USDA Rural Development
Contact Your State Rural Development Office
http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/recd_map.html
Michael B. Canales
Phone: 254-742-9789
E-mail: Michael.Canales@tx.usda.gov
Notas do Editor
The most common RUS program is the direct water and waste disposal loan and grant program. This program is administered following RUS Instruction 1780. Financial assistance is provided in the means of low-interest loans to develop water and wastewater systems, including solid waste disposal and storm drainage, in rural areas. Priority is given to public entities in areas with less than 5,500 people to restore a deteriorating water supply, or to improve, enlarge, or modify a water facility or an inadequate waste facility. Preference is also given to requests that involve the merging of small facilities and those serving low-income families. The maximum term for all loans is 40 years. Guaranteed loans may be made for the same purpose as direct loans. They are made and serviced by lenders such as banks and savings and loan associations. The guarantee will be 90% of the eligible loss incurred by the lender.Grants may be made in conjunction with loans to reduce user costs to a reasonable level.RUS Instruction 1780 - Direct Loans and Grants RUS Instruction 1779 - Guaranteed LoansLoans may be made to develop water and wastewater systems, including solid waste disposal and storm drainage, in rural areas. Priority is given to public entities in areas with less than 5,500 people to restore a deteriorating water supply or to improve, enlarge, or modify a water facility or an inadequate waste facility. Grants may be made in conjunction with loans to reduce user costs to a reasonable level.1777 - 306-CLoans and grants are available to low-income rural communities whose residents face significant health risks because they do not have access to water supply systems or waste disposal facilities. Grants are available to provide water or waste services to designated colonias in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas. Grants may be made in conjunction with loans and up to 100 percent of the eligible project cost.Colonia. Any identifiable community designated in writing by the State or county in which it is located; determined to be a colonia on the basis of objective criteria including lack of potable water supply, lack of adequate sewage systems, and lack of decent, safe, and sanitary housing, inadequate roads and drainage; and existed and was generally recognized as a colonia before October 1, 1989.Funds may be used to: (1) Construct, enlarge, extend, or otherwise improve community water and/or waste disposal systems. Otherwise improve would include extending service lines to and/or connecting residence's plumbing to the system. (2) Make loans and grants to individuals for extending service lines to and/or connecting residences to the applicant's system. The approval official must determine that this is a practical and economical method of connecting individuals to the community water and/or waste disposal system. Loan funds can only be used for loans, and grant funds can only be used for grants. (3) Make improvements to individual's residence when needed to allow use of the water and/or waste disposal system.Note: No loan funds have ever been appropriated under this authority.ECWAG -RUS Instruction 1778Environmental Policies and Intended to assist rural communities when disaster strikes and causes significant decline in the quantity or quality of potable water. rocedures for WWD Programs