Expanded SUTA Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-3104
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT]
Introduced: 2018-06-21
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Government lending and loan guarantees

Indian lands and resources rights

Land use and conservation

Rural conditions and development
Latest action: action_date: 2018-06-21
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

Summaries:
action_date: 2018-06-21
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><b>Expanded SUTA Act of 2018 </b></p> <p>This bill amends the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to expand the Department Agriculture (USDA) Substantially Underserved Trust Area (SUTA) authority to: (1) include all programs administered by the USDA rural development mission area, and (2) specify that USDA may use the authority for certain communities within former Indian reservations. </p> <p>(Under current law, the SUTA authority is limited to certain programs administered by the USDA Rural Utilities Service. The authority permits USDA to modify or waive certain requirements and procedures for loans and grants in order to improve the availability of programs in communities on trust land [e.g., land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans] that have a high need for the benefits of an eligible program.)</p>

tv_txt: II 115th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3104 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES June 21, 2018 Mr. Tester (for himself and Ms. Heitkamp ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry A BILL To amend the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to expand substantially underserved trust area authority to all rural development programs of the Department of Agriculture.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Expanded SUTA Act of 2018 . 2. Expansion and clarification of existing authority Section 306F of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 ( 7 U.S.C. 936f ) is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) in paragraph (1), by striking Rural Utilities Service in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) and all that follows through the period at the end of subparagraph (B) and inserting rural development mission area. ; and (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting , including a community within any former Indian reservation, before with respect to which ; and (2) in subsection (c)— (A) in paragraph (1), by striking Rural Utilities Service to qualified utilities or applicants and inserting rural development mission area to qualified applicants ; and (B) in paragraph (2), by striking Rural Utilities Service to facilitate the construction, acquisition, or improvement of infrastructure and inserting rural development mission area .