Title: Rural Investment in America Act
Policy area: Commerce

Summary:
Rural Investment in America Act
This bill authorizes the Small Business Administration to make loans for certain costs to businesses that manufacture goods essential to critical infrastructure sectors in rural areas. Businesses that meet at least 75% of their job creation goals under such loans may receive partial loan forgiveness.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6975 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6975

  To amend the Small Business Act to establish a rural manufacturing 
            forgivable loan program, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 8, 2022

Mr. Rodney Davis of Illinois (for himself, Mr. O'Halleran, Mr. Johnson 
of Ohio, Ms. Schrier, and Mr. Crawford) introduced the following bill; 
         which was referred to the Committee on Small Business

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Small Business Act to establish a rural manufacturing 
            forgivable loan program, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Rural Investment in America Act''.

SEC. 2. RURAL MANUFACTURING LOANS.

    (a) In General.--Section 7(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
636(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and (F)'' 
                and inserting ``(F), and (G)''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraph:
                    ``(G) Participation in rural manufacturing loans.--
                In an agreement to participate in a loan on a deferred 
                basis under paragraph (38), the participation by the 
                Administration shall be 100 percent.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(38) Rural manufacturing loans.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Administrator may guarantee 
                a loan made under this paragraph to a covered applicant 
                for the purpose of paying any eligible costs associated 
                with the development of a business concern that 
                manufactures goods essential to critical infrastructure 
                sectors in rural areas.
                    ``(B) Application.--A covered applicant shall 
                submit an application for a loan under this paragraph 
                which shall include a comprehensive business plan that 
                includes a goal for the resulting number of jobs to be 
                created at the site that will be developed or expanded 
                with the proceeds of such loan.
                    ``(C) Loan forgiveness.--A covered applicant shall 
                be eligible for forgiveness of any indebtedness on a 
                loan made under this paragraph as follows:
                            ``(i) If the covered applicant has met 75 
                        percent or more of the job creation goals of 
                        the comprehensive business plan described in 
                        subparagraph (B) not later than 5 years after 
                        the date of origination of the loan.
                            ``(ii) If the Administrator makes a 
                        determination that the covered applicant only 
                        used loan proceeds for eligible costs, the 
                        covered applicant shall receive loan 
                        forgiveness in an amount--
                                    ``(I) less than or equal to an 
                                amount that is 50 percent of the total 
                                financing amount specified by the 
                                covered applicant; and
                                    ``(II) less than or equal to 
                                maximum amount allowable under 
                                paragraph (3)(A).
                    ``(D) Identification of additional critical 
                infrastructure sectors.--
                            ``(i) Study.--Not later than 180 days after 
                        the date of enactment of this paragraph, the 
                        Administrator shall complete a study to 
                        identify any additional sectors to be included 
                        in the definition of the term `critical 
                        infrastructure sector' under this paragraph.
                            ``(ii) Provision of loans prior to 
                        completion of study.--The Administrator may 
                        guarantee a loan made under this paragraph 
                        before the completion of the study required 
                        under clause (i).
                            ``(iii) Additional critical infrastructure 
                        sectors.--The Administrator may, at any time, 
                        take such actions as are necessary to identify 
                        additional sectors to be included in the 
                        definition of the term `critical infrastructure 
                        sector' under this paragraph.
                    ``(E) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
                            ``(i) Covered applicant.--The term `covered 
                        applicant' means a business that--
                                    ``(I) has a site located in rural 
                                area industrial park, manufactures 
                                goods that are essential to critical 
                                infrastructure sectors at such site, 
                                and intends to expand such site for 
                                purposes of employing a larger 
                                workforce at such site; or
                                    ``(II) is developing a site located 
                                in a rural area industrial park to 
                                manufacture goods that are essential to 
                                critical infrastructure sectors at such 
                                site.
                            ``(ii) Critical infrastructure sector.--The 
                        term `critical infrastructure sector' means--
                                    ``(I) each of the 16 critical 
                                infrastructure sectors designated in 
                                Presidential Policy Directive 21, 
                                titled `Critical Infrastructure 
                                Security and Resilience' and published 
                                on February 12, 2013;
                                    ``(II) any additional sectors 
                                identified pursuant to section 9002 of 
                                the National Defense Authorization Act 
                                for Fiscal Year 2021 (6 U.S.C. 652a); 
                                and
                                    ``(III) any additional sectors the 
                                Administrator identifies under 
                                subparagraph (C).
                            ``(iii) Eligible costs.--The term `eligible 
                        costs' means--
                                    ``(I) payroll, construction, 
                                permitting, and other capital costs 
                                associated with--
                                            ``(aa) the development of a 
                                        site located in a rural area 
                                        industrial park for a business 
                                        that manufactures goods that 
                                        are essential to critical 
                                        infrastructure sectors at such 
                                        site; and
                                            ``(bb) the expansion of 
                                        such a site for purposes of 
                                        employing a larger workforce at 
                                        such site; and
                                    ``(II) any other costs the 
                                Administrator determines to be 
                                appropriate.''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Administrator of the Small Business Administration 
$2,000,000,000, which shall be authorized to remain available until 
expended, to carry out paragraph (38) of section 7(a) of the Small 
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)), as added by subsection (a).
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