401 
‘‘(D) provides the technical assistance 
through toll-free hotlines, a website, publications, 
and work shops. 
‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish a national appropriate technology transfer for 
rural areas program to assist agricultural producers 
that are seeking information to help the agricultural 
producers— 
‘‘(A) reduce input costs; 
‘‘(B) conserve energy resources; 
‘‘(C) diversify operations through new en-
ergy crops and energy generation facilities; and 
‘‘(D) expand markets for the agricultural 
commodities produced by the producers through 
use of sustainable farming practices. 
‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
carry out the program under this subsection by 
making a grant to, or offering to enter into a co-
operative agreement with, a national nonprofit 
agricultural assistance organization. 
‘‘(B) COST SHARE.—A grant made, or coop-
erative agreement entered into, under subpara-
graph (A) shall provide 100 percent of the cost 
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of providing information pursuant to paragraph 
(2). 
‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary to carry out this subsection $5,000,000 for each 
fiscal year.’’. 
SEC. 6012. GRANTS TO IMPROVE TECHNICAL INFRASTRUC-
TURE AND IMPROVE QUALITY OF RURAL 
HEALTH CARE FACILITIES. 
Subtitle D of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Devel-
opment Act (7 U.S.C. 1981–2008r), as amended by section 
5025 of this Act, is amended by inserting after section 365 
the following: 
‘‘SEC. 366. GRANTS TO IMPROVE TECHNICAL INFRASTRUC-
TURE AND IMPROVE QUALITY OF RURAL 
HEALTH CARE FACILITIES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish a 
program to award grants to rural health facilities for the 
purpose of assisting the facilities in— 
‘‘(1) purchasing health information technology to 
improve quality in health care and patient safety; or 
‘‘(2) improving health care quality and patient 
safety, including the development of— 
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‘‘(A) quality improvement support struc-
tures to assist rural health systems and profes-
sionals— 
‘‘(i) achieve greater integration of per-
sonal and population health services; and 
‘‘(ii) 
address 
safety, 
effectiveness, 
patient- or community-centeredness, timeli-
ness, efficiency, and equity; and 
‘‘(B) innovative approaches to the financing 
and delivery of health services to achieve rural 
health quality goals. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY.—The 
term ‘health information technology’ includes total ex-
penditures incurred for— 
‘‘(A) purchasing, leasing, and installing 
computer software and hardware, including 
handheld computer technologies, and related 
services; 
‘‘(B) making improvements to computer 
software and hardware; 
‘‘(C) purchasing or leasing communications 
capabilities necessary for clinical data access, 
storage, and exchange; 
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‘‘(D) services associated with acquiring, im-
plementing, operating, or optimizing the use of 
computer software and hardware and clinical 
health care informatics systems; 
‘‘(E) providing education and training to 
eligible entity staff on information systems and 
technology designed to improve patient safety 
and quality of care; and 
‘‘(F) purchasing, leasing, subscribing, or 
servicing support to establish interoperability 
that— 
‘‘(i) integrates patient-specific clinical 
data with well-established national treat-
ment guidelines; 
‘‘(ii) 
provides 
ongoing, 
continuous 
quality improvement functions that allow 
providers to assess improvement rates over 
time and against averages for similar pro-
viders; and 
‘‘(iii) integrates with larger health net-
works. 
‘‘(2) RURAL AREA.—The term ‘rural area’ means 
any area of the United States that is not— 
‘‘(A) included within the boundaries of any 
city, town, borough, or village, whether incor-
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porated or unincorporated, with a population of 
more than 20,000 inhabitants; or 
‘‘(B) the urbanized area contiguous and ad-
jacent to such a city or town. 
‘‘(3) RURAL HEALTH FACILITY.—The term ‘rural 
health facility’ means any of the following: 
‘‘(A) SOLE COMMUNITY HOSPITAL.—A hos-
pital (as defined in section 1886(a)(2) of the So-
cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(a)(2))). 
‘‘(B) CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITAL.—A crit-
ical access hospital (as defined in section 
1861(mm)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395x(mm)(1))). 
‘‘(C) FEDERALLY QUALIFIED HEALTH CEN-
TER
IN
RURAL
AREAS.—A Federally qualified 
health center (as defined in section 1861(aa)(4) 
of 
the 
Social 
Security 
Act 
(42 
U.S.C. 
1395x(aa)(4)) that is located in a rural area. 
‘‘(D) RURAL PHYSICIAN OR RURAL PHYSI-
CIAN GROUP PRACTICE.—A physician or physi-
cian group practice that is located in a rural 
area. 
‘‘(E) RURAL
HEALTH
CLINIC.—A rural 
health clinic (as defined in section 1861(aa)(2) 
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of 
the 
Social 
Security 
Act 
(42 
U.S.C. 
1395x(aa)(2))). 
‘‘(F) MEDICARE DEPENDENT HOSPITAL.—A 
medicare-dependent, small rural hospital (as de-
fined in section 1886(d)(5)(G)(iv) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(5)(G)(iv))). 
‘‘(c) AMOUNT OF GRANT.—The Secretary shall deter-
mine the amount of a grant awarded under this section. 
‘‘(d) FURNISHING THE SECRETARY WITH INFORMA-
TION.—An eligible entity receiving a grant under this sec-
tion shall furnish the Secretary with such information as 
the Secretary may require to— 
‘‘(1) evaluate the project for which the grant is 
made; and 
‘‘(2) ensure that assistance provided under the 
grant is expended for the purposes for which the grant 
is made. 
‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out 
this section not more than $30,000,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 2008 through 2012.’’. 
SEC. 6013. RURAL ENTREPRENEUR AND MICROENTERPRISE 
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 
Subtitle D of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Devel-
opment Act (7 U.S.C. 1981–2008r), as amended by sections 
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5025 and 6012 of this Act, is amended by inserting after 
section 366 the following: 
‘‘SEC. 367. RURAL ENTREPRENEUR AND MICROENTERPRISE 
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) ECONOMICALLY
DISADVANTAGED
MICRO-
ENTREPRENEUR.—The term ‘economically disadvan-
taged microentrepreneur’ means an owner, majority 
owner, or developer of a microenterprise that has the 
ability to compete in the private sector but has been 
impaired because of diminished capital and credit op-
portunities, as compared to other microentrepreneurs 
in the industry. 
‘‘(2) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian tribe’ has 
the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian 
Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
U.S.C. 450b). 
‘‘(3) INTERMEDIARY.—The term ‘intermediary’ 
means a nonprofit entity that provides assistance— 
‘‘(A) to a microenterprise development orga-
nization; or 
‘‘(B) for a microenterprise development pro-
gram. 
‘‘(4) LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘low- 
income individual’ means an individual with an in-
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come (adjusted for family size) of not more than 80 
percent of the national median income. 
‘‘(5) MICROCREDIT.—The term ‘microcredit’ 
means a business loan or loan guarantee of not more 
than $50,000 that is provided to a rural entre-
preneur. 
‘‘(6) MICROENTERPRISE.—The term ‘microenter-
prise’ means— 
‘‘(A) a sole proprietorship; or 
‘‘(B) a business entity with not more than 
10 full-time-equivalent employees. 
‘‘(7) MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT ORGANI-
ZATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘microenter-
prise development organization’ means a non-
profit entity that— 
‘‘(i) provides training and technical 
assistance to rural entrepreneurs; and 
‘‘(ii) facilitates access to capital or an-
other service described in subsection (b) for 
rural entrepreneurs. 
‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘microenter-
prise development organization’ includes an or-
ganization described in subparagraph (A) with a 
demonstrated record of delivering services to eco-
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nomically disadvantaged microentrepreneurs, or 
an effective plan to develop a program to deliver 
microenterprise services to rural entrepreneurs 
effectively, as determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(8) MICROENTERPRISE
DEVELOPMENT
PRO-
GRAM.—The term ‘microenterprise development pro-
gram’ means a program administered by a qualified 
organization serving a rural area. 
‘‘(9) MICROENTREPRENEUR.—The term ‘micro-
entrepreneur means’ the owner, operator, or developer 
of a microenterprise. 
‘‘(10) PROGRAM.—The term ‘program’ means the 
rural entrepreneur and microenterprise program es-
tablished under subsection (b)(1). 
‘‘(11) QUALIFIED
ORGANIZATION.—The term 
‘qualified organization’ means— 
‘‘(A) a microenterprise development organi-
zation or microenterprise development program 
that has a demonstrated record of delivering 
microenterprise services to rural entrepreneurs, 
or an effective plan to develop a program to de-
liver microenterprise services to rural entre-
preneurs effectively, as determined by the Sec-
retary; 
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‘‘(B) an intermediary that has a dem-
onstrated record of delivering assistance to 
microenterprise development organizations or 
microenterprise development programs; 
‘‘(C) an Indian tribe, the tribal government 
of which certifies to the Secretary that there is 
no microenterprise development organization or 
microenterprise development program under the 
jurisdiction of the Indian tribe; 
‘‘(D) a group of 2 or more organizations or 
Indian tribes described in any of subparagraphs 
(A) through (C) that agree to act jointly as a 
qualified organization under this section; or 
‘‘(E) for purposes of subsection (b), a public 
college or university that has a demonstrated 
record of delivering assistance to microenterprise 
development organizations or microenterprise de-
velopment programs. 
‘‘(12) RURAL
AREA.—The term ‘rural area’ 
means any area of the United States that is not— 
‘‘(A) included within the boundaries of any 
city, town, borough, or village, whether incor-
porated or unincorporated, with a population of 
more than 20,000 inhabitants; or 
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‘‘(B) the urbanized area contiguous and ad-
jacent to such a city or town. 
‘‘(13) RURAL CAPACITY-BUILDING SERVICE.—The 
term ‘rural capacity-building service’ means a service 
provided to an organization that— 
‘‘(A) is, or is in the process of becoming, a 
microenterprise development organization or 
microenterprise development program; and 
‘‘(B) serves rural areas for the purpose of 
enhancing the ability of the organization to pro-
vide training, technical assistance, and other re-
lated services to rural entrepreneurs. 
‘‘(14) RURAL ENTREPRENEUR.—The term ‘rural 
entrepreneur’ means a microentrepreneur, or prospec-
tive microentrepreneur— 
‘‘(A) the principal place of business of 
which is in a rural area; and 
‘‘(B) that is unable to obtain sufficient 
training, technical assistance, or microcredit 
elsewhere, as determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(15) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘tribal 
government’ means the governing body of an Indian 
tribe. 
‘‘(b) RURAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND MICROENTER-
PRISE PROGRAM.— 
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‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish a rural entrepreneurship and microenterprise 
program. 
‘‘(2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the program 
shall be to provide low-income individuals and mod-
erate-income individuals with— 
‘‘(A) the skills necessary to establish new 
small businesses in rural areas; and 
‘‘(B) continuing technical and financial as-
sistance as individuals and business starting or 
operating small businesses. 
‘‘(3) GRANTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary may 
make a grant under the program to a qualified 
organization— 
‘‘(i) to provide training, operational 
support, or a rural capacity-building serv-
ice to a qualified organization to assist the 
qualified organization in developing micro-
enterprise training, technical assistance, 
market development assistance, and other 
related services, primarily for business with 
10 or fewer full-time-equivalent employees; 
‘‘(ii) to assist in researching and devel-
oping the best practices in delivering train-
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ing, technical assistance, and microcredit to 
rural entrepreneurs; and 
‘‘(iii) to carry out such other projects 
and activities as the Secretary determines 
to be consistent with the purposes of this 
section. 
‘‘(B) DIVERSITY.—In making grants under 
this paragraph, the Secretary shall ensure, to the 
maximum extent practicable, that grant recipi-
ents include qualified organizations— 
‘‘(i) of varying sizes; and 
‘‘(ii) that serve racially and ethnically 
diverse populations. 
‘‘(C) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of 
any grant made to a qualified organization 
under this paragraph, the Secretary shall 
require the qualified organization to match 
not less than 25 percent of the total amount 
of the grant. 
‘‘(ii) SOURCES.—In addition to cash 
from non-Federal sources, a matching share 
provided by the qualified organization may 
include indirect costs or in-kind contribu-
tions funded under non-Federal programs. 
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‘‘(4) RURAL MICROLOAN AND TECHNICAL ASSIST-
ANCE PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—In carrying out 
the program, the Secretary may carry out a 
rural microloan program. 
‘‘(B) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the rural 
microloan program shall be to provide technical 
and financial assistance through qualified orga-
nizations to sole proprietorships and small busi-
nesses located in rural areas with a particular 
focus on businesses with 10 or fewer full-time 
equivalent employees. 
‘‘(C) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.—In car-
rying out the rural microloan program, the Sec-
retary may— 
‘‘(i) make loans to qualified organiza-
tions for the purpose of making short-term, 
fixed interest rate microloans to startup, 
newly established, and growing rural micro-
business concerns; and 
‘‘(ii) in conjunction with the loans, 
provide grants in accordance with subpara-
graph (E) to the organizations for the pur-
pose of providing intensive marketing, man-
agement, and technical assistance to small 
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business concerns that are borrowers under 
this paragraph. 
‘‘(D) LOAN
DURATION; INTEREST
RATES; 
CONDITIONS.— 
‘‘(i) LOAN DURATION.—A loan made 
by the Secretary under this paragraph shall 
be for a term of 20 years. 
‘‘(ii) APPLICABLE INTEREST RATES.— 
A loan made by the Secretary under this 
paragraph to a qualified organization shall 
bear an annual interest rate of at least 1 
percent. 
‘‘(iii) DEFERRAL
OF
INTEREST
AND 
PRINCIPAL.—The Secretary may permit the 
deferral of payments, for principal and in-
terest, on a loan made under this para-
graph for a period of not more than 2 
years, beginning on the date the loan is 
made. 
‘‘(E) GRANT AMOUNTS.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 
provided in this section, each qualified or-
ganization that receives a loan under this 
paragraph shall be eligible to receive a 
grant to provide marketing, management, 
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and technical assistance to small business 
concerns that are borrowers or potential 
borrowers under this subsection. 
‘‘(ii) MAXIMUM
AMOUNT
FOR
MICRO-
ENTERPRISE
DEVELOPMENT
ORGANIZA-
TIONS.—Each microenterprise development 
organization that receives a loan under this 
paragraph shall receive an annual grant in 
an amount equal to not more than 25 per-
cent of the total outstanding balance of 
loans made to the microenterprise develop-
ment organization under this paragraph, as 
of the date the grant is made. 
‘‘(iii) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 
‘‘(I) IN
GENERAL.—As a condi-
tion of any grant made to a qualified 
organization under this subparagraph, 
the Secretary shall require the quali-
fied organization to match not less 
than 15 percent of the total amount of 
the grant. 
‘‘(II) SOURCES.—In addition to 
cash from non-Federal sources, a 
matching share provided by the quali-
fied organization may include indirect 
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costs or in-kind contributions funded 
under non-Federal programs. 
‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Not more than 10 
percent of assistance received by a qualified organization 
for a fiscal year under this section may be used to pay ad-
ministrative expenses. 
‘‘(d) FURNISHING THE SECRETARY WITH INFORMA-
TION.—A qualified organization that receives a grant under 
subsection (b)(3) or loan under subsection (b)(4) shall fur-
nish the Secretary by December 1 such information as the 
Secretary may require to ensure that assistance provided 
under the grant or loan is expended for the purposes for 
which the grant or loan is made. 
‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out 
this section not more than $20,000,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 2008 through 2012.’’. 
SEC. 6014. CRITERIA TO BE APPLIED IN CONSIDERING AP-
PLICATIONS 
FOR 
RURAL 
DEVELOPMENT 
PROJECTS. 
Subtitle D of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Devel-
opment Act (7 U.S.C. 1981–2008r), as amended by sections 
5025, 6012, and 6013 of this Act, is amended by inserting 
after section 367 the following: 
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