Helping America’s Farmers Act

Bill: 118-hr-10363
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Hayes, Jahana [D-CT-5]
Introduced: 2024-12-11
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Latest action: action_date: 2024-12-11
text: Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.

Summaries:

tv_txt: I 118th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 10363 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES December 11, 2024 Mrs. Hayes introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture A BILL To amend the Agricultural Act of 1961 with respect to the Emergency Loan Program.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Helping America’s Farmers Act . 2. Emergency Loan Program Subtitle C of title III of the Agricultural Act of 1961 ( 7 U.S.C. 1961 et seq. ) is amended— (1) in section 321(b), by adding at the end the following: (4) Historically underserved states Notwithstanding any other provision of this subtitle, the Secretary may waive the requirement under paragraph (1) if, at the time an applicant submits an application for a loan under subsection (a), such applicant resides, and the property for which the applicant seeks to cover with such loan is located, in any— (A) State provided assistance under section 524(b) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1524(b) ; commonly known as the Agricultural Management Assistance program ); or (B) other State that the Secretary determines is historically underserved by crop insurance. ; (2) by amending section 323 to read as follows: 323. Use of loans Subject to the limitations on the amounts of loans provided in section 324(a) of this title, loans under this subtitle may be used— (1) for any purpose authorized for loans under subtitle A or B of this title; (2) for crop or livestock changes that are necessitated by a quarantine, natural disaster, major disaster, or emergency and that are deemed desirable by the applicant; (3) to provide paid leave to employees unable to work due to the direct effect of a natural disaster; (4) to maintain payroll to retain employees during business disruptions or substantial slowdowns; (5) to meet increased costs to obtain materials unavailable from the original source of the applicant due to interrupted supply chains; and (6) to make rent or mortgage payments. ; (3) in section 324— (A) in subsection (a)(2), by striking would cause and all that follows through the period at the end and inserting is greater than $2,000,000. ; (B) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows: (b) Interest rate A loan under this subtitle shall be at an interest rate of zero percent. ; and (C) by adding at the end the following: (f) Waiver of certain requirements With respect to a loan made under this subtitle in response to a natural disaster, the Secretary shall waive— (1) any rules related to the personal guarantee on advances and loans of not more than $200,000 for all borrowers; and (2) any requirement that the borrower exhaust other loan options before applying for a loan under this subtitle. (g) Priority In making a loan under this subtitle, the Secretary shall give priority to each— (1) applicant in a State determined by the Secretary to be most impacted by a natural disaster; (2) minority, veteran, and woman applicant; (3) applicant in a State provided assistance under section 524(b) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1524(b) ; commonly known as the Agricultural Management Assistance program ); (4) applicant in a State that the Secretary determines is historically underserved by crop insurance; and (5) other applicant as the Secretary determines appropriate. ; and (4) by inserting after section 329 the following: 330. Funding There is hereby appropriated, out of any amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated $10,000,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2029, to make loans to applicants under this subtitle. .