§1991. Definitions

(a) As used in this chapter:

(1) The term "farmer" includes a person who is engaged in, or who, with assistance afforded under this chapter, intends to engage in, fish farming.

(2) The term "farming" shall be deemed to include fish farming.

(3) The term "owner-operator" shall include in the State of Hawaii the lessee-operator of real property in any case in which the Secretary determines that such real property cannot be acquired in fee simple by such lessee-operator, that adequate security is provided for the loan with respect to such real property for which such lessee-operator applies under this chapter, and that there is a reasonable probability of accomplishing the objectives and repayment of such loan.

(4) The word "insure" as used in this chapter includes guarantee, which means to guarantee the payment of a loan originated, held, and serviced by a private financial agency or other lender approved by the Secretary.

(5) The term "contract of insurance" includes a contract of guarantee.

(6) The terms "United States" and "State" shall include each of the several States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands of the United States, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and, to the extent the Secretary determines it to be feasible and appropriate, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

(7) The term "joint operation" means a joint farming operation in which two or more farmers work together sharing equally or unequally land, labor, equipment, expenses, and income.

(8) The term "beginning farmer or rancher" means such term as defined by the Secretary.

(9) The term "direct loan" means a loan made or insured from funds in the account created by section 1929 of this title.

(10) The term "farmer program loan" means a farm ownership loan (FO) under section 1923 of this title, operating loan (OL) under section 1942 of this title, soil and water loan (SW) under section 1924 of this title, recreation loan (RL) under section 1924 of this title,¹ emergency loan (EM) under section 1961 of this title, economic emergency loan (EE) under section 202 of the Emergency Agricultural Credit Adjustment Act (title II of Public Law 95-334), economic opportunity loan (EO) under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1961 (42 U.S.C. 2942), softwood timber loan (ST) under section 1254 of the Food Security Act of 1985, or rural housing loan for farm service buildings (RHF) under section 1472 of title 42.

(11) The term "qualified beginning farmer or rancher" means an applicant-

(A) who is eligible for assistance under this chapter;

(B) who has not operated a farm or ranch, or who has operated a farm or ranch for not more than 10 years;

(C) in the case of a cooperative, corporation, partnership, or joint operation, who has members, stockholders, partners, or joint operators who are all related to one another by blood or marriage;

(D)(i) in the case of an owner and operator of a farm or ranch, who-

(I) in the case of a loan made to an individual, individually or with the immediate family of the applicant-

(aa) materially and substantially participates in the operation of the farm or ranch; and

(bb) provides substantial day-to-day labor and management of the farm or ranch, consistent with the practices in the State or county in which the farm or ranch is located; or

(II)(aa) in the case of a loan made to a cooperative, corporation, partnership, or joint operation, has members, stockholders, partners, or joint operators, materially and substantially participate in the operation of the farm or ranch; and

(bb) in the case of a loan made to a corporation, has stockholders, all of whom are qualified beginning farmers or ranchers; and

(ii) in the case of an applicant seeking to own and operate a farm or ranch, who-

(I) in the case of a loan made to an individual, individually or with the immediate family of the applicant, will-

(aa) materially and substantially participate in the operation of the farm or ranch; and

(bb) provide substantial day-to-day labor and management of the farm or ranch, consistent with the practices in the State or county in which the farm or ranch is located; or

(II)(aa) in the case of a loan made to a cooperative, corporation, partnership, or joint operation, will have members, stockholders, partners, or joint operators, materially and substantially participate in the operation of the farm or ranch; and

(bb) in the case of a loan made to a corporation, has stockholders, all of whom are qualified beginning farmers or ranchers;

(E) who agrees to participate in such loan assessment, borrower training, and financial management programs as the Secretary may require;

(F) who does not own land or who, directly or through interests in family farm corporations, owns land, the aggregate acreage of which does not exceed 15 percent of the median acreage of the farms or ranches, as the case may be, in the county in which the farm or ranch operations of the applicant are located, as reported in the most recent census of agriculture taken under section 142 of title 13; and

(G) who demonstrates that the available resources of the applicant and spouse (if any) of the applicant are not sufficient to enable the applicant to continue farming or ranching on a viable scale.

(b) As used in sections 1927(e), 1981d, 1985(e) and (f), 1988(f), 1999(h), 2000(b) and (c), 2001, and 2005 of this title:

(1) The term "borrower" means any farm borrower who has outstanding obligations to the Secretary under any farmer program loan, without regard to whether the loan has been accelerated, but does not include any farm borrower all of whose loans and accounts have been foreclosed on or liquidated, voluntarily or otherwise.

(2) The term "loan service program" means, with respect to a farmer program borrower, a primary loan service program or a preservation loan service program.

(3) The term "primary loan service program" means-

(A) loan consolidation, rescheduling, or reamortization;

(B) interest rate reduction, including the use of the limited resource program;

(C) loan restructuring, including deferral, set aside, or writing down of the principal or accumulated interest charges, or both, of the loan; or

(D) any combination of actions described in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C).

(4) The term "preservation loan service program" means-

(A) homestead retention as authorized under section 2000 of this title; and

(B) a leaseback or buyback of farmland authorized under section 1985 of this title.

(Pub. L. 87 128, title III, §343, as added Pub. L. 87 703, title IV, §401(5), Sept. 27, 1962, 76 Stat. 632; amended Pub. L. 89 586, Sept. 19, 1966, 80 Stat. 809; Pub. L. 92 419, title I, §128(a), Aug. 30, 1972, 86 Stat. 666; Pub. L. 95 334, title I, §124, Aug. 4, 1978, 92 Stat. 428; Pub. L. 96 438, §2(2), Oct. 13, 1980, 94 Stat. 1872; Pub. L. 99 198, title XIII, §1301(b), Dec. 23, 1985, 99 Stat. 1519; Pub. L. 100 233, title VI, §602, Jan. 6, 1988, 101 Stat. 1665; Pub. L. 101 624, title XVIII, §1814, title XXIII, §2388(h), Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 3824, 4053; Pub. L. 102 237, title VII, §702(h)(1), Dec. 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 1880; Pub. L. 102 554, §19, Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat. 4158.)

References in Text

For definition of "this chapter", referred to in subsec. (a), see note set out under section 1921 of this title.

Recreation loan (RL) under section 1924 of this title, referred to in subsec. (a)(10), is a reference to former subsec. (a) of section 1924 of this title which was repealed by Pub. L. 102 237, title V, §501(a)(1), Dec. 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 1866.

Section 202 of the Emergency Agricultural Credit Adjustment Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(10), is section 202 of Pub. L. 95 334, title II, Aug. 4, 1978, 92 Stat. 429, as amended, which was set out in a note preceding section 1961 of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 101 624, title XVIII, §1851, Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 3837.

The Economic Opportunity Act of 1961, referred to in subsec. (a)(10), probably means the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, Pub. L. 88 452, Aug. 20, 1964, 78 Stat. 508, as amended, which was classified generally to chapter 34 (§2701 et seq.) of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, prior to repeal, except for titles VIII and X, by Pub. L. 97 35, title VI, §683(a), Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 519. Titles VIII and X of the Act are classified generally to subchapters VIII (§2991 et seq.) and X (§2996 et seq.) of chapter 34 of Title 42. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Tables.

Section 1254 of the Food Security Act of 1985, referred to in subsec. (a)(10), is section 1254 of Pub. L. 99 198, title XII, Dec. 23, 1985, 99 Stat. 1517, which amended Pub. L. 98 258, §608, set out as a note under section 1981 of this title.

Amendments

1992-Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102 554 substituted "this chapter:" and par. (1) for "this chapter (1) the term 'farmers' shall be deemed to include persons who are engaged in, or who, with assistance afforded under this chapter, intend to engage in, fish farming,", in pars. (2) to (8), realigned margins and substituted "The" for "the" first place appearing in each par. and a period for a comma at end of each par., in par. (9), realigned margin and substituted "The" for "the" first place appearing and a period for ", and" at end, in par. (10), realigned margin and substituted "The" for "the" first place appearing, and added par. (11).

1991-Subsec. (a)(1), (3). Pub. L. 102 237, §702(h)(1)(A), (B), made technical amendment to directory language of Pub. L. 101 624, §2388(h)(1), (2). See 1990 Amendment note below.

Subsec. (a)(5). Pub. L. 102 237, §702(h)(1)(C), repealed Pub. L. 101 624, §2388(h)(3). See 1990 Amendment note below.

1990-Subsec. (a)(1), (3). Pub. L. 101 624, §2388(h)(1), (2), as amended by Pub. L. 102 237, §702(h)(1)(A), (B), struck out "and" after "fish farming," in par. (1), and "and" after "such loan," in par. (3).

Subsec. (a)(5). Pub. L. 101 624, §2388(h)(3), which directed substitution of "'contract of insurance'" for "contract of insurance", was repealed by Pub. L. 102 237, §702(h)(1)(C). See Construction of 1990 Amendment note below.

Subsec. (a)(8) to (10). Pub. L. 101 624, §1814, added pars. (8) to (10).

1988-Pub. L. 100 233 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsec. (b).

1985-Pub. L. 99 198 added cl. (7).

1980-Pub. L. 96 438 added cl. (3). For termination of former cl. (3) as added by Pub. L. 89 586, see Effective and Termination Date of 1966 Amendment note below.

1978-Pub. L. 95 334 added cl. (6).

1972-Pub. L. 92 419 added cls. (4) and (5).

1966-Pub. L. 89 586 struck out "and" before "(2)" and inserted cl. (3) defining "owner-operator". See Effective and Termination Date of 1966 Amendment note below.

Effective Date of 1991 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 102 237 effective as if included in the provision of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, Pub. L. 101 624, to which the amendment relates, see section 1101(b)(7) of Pub. L. 102 237, set out as a note under section 1421 of this title.

Effective and Termination Date of 1966 Amendment

Pub. L. 89 586, as amended by Pub. L. 90 426, July 26, 1968, 82 Stat. 445, provided in part that the amendment made by Pub. L. 89 586 is effective only for the period of time commencing with Sept. 19, 1966, and ending on June 30, 1970.

Construction of 1990 Amendment

Section 702(h)(2) of Pub. L. 102 237, as amended by Pub. L. 102 552, title V, §516(k), Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat. 4139, provided that: "The Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act [see Short Title note set out under section 1921 of this title] shall be applied and administered as if the amendment made by section 2388(h)(3) of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 [Pub. L. 101 624, amending this section] had never been enacted."

Termination of Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands

For termination of Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, see note set out preceding section 1681 of Title 48, Territories and Insular Possessions.

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in section 1985 of this title; title 25 section 492.

¹See References in Text note below.