§ 764.152 - General eligibility requirements.

§ 764.152 Eligibility General eligibility requirements.

The applicant:

(a) Must comply with the general eligibility requirements established at § 764.101;

(b) And anyone who will sign the promissory note, must not have received debt forgiveness from the Agency on any direct or guaranteed loan;

(c) Must be the owner-operator of the farm financed with Agency funds after the loan is closed. Ownership of the family farm operation and farm real estate may be held either directly in the individual's name or indirectly through interest in a legal entity. In the case of an entity:

(1) The entity is controlled by farmers engaged primarily and directly in farming in the United States, after the loan is made;

(2) An ownership entity must be authorized to own a farm in the state or states in which the farm is located. An operating entity must be authorized to operate a farm in the state or states in which the farm is located.

(3) If the entity members holding majority interest are:

(i) Related by blood or marriage, at least one member of the entity must operate the family farm and at least one member of the entity or the entity must own the farm; or,

(ii) Not related by blood or marriage, the entity members holding at least 50 percent interest must operate the family farm and the entity members holding at least 50 percent interest or the entity must own the farm.

(4) If the entity is an operator only entity, the individuals that own the farm (real estate) must own at least 50 percent of the family farm (operating entity).

(d) And in the case of an entity, one or more members constituting a majority interest, must have participated in the business operations of a farm for at least 3 years out of the 10 years prior to the date the application is submitted. One of these three years can be substituted with the following experience:

(1) Postsecondary education in agriculture business, horticulture, animal science, agronomy, or other agricultural related fields,

(2) Significant business management experience, or

(3) Leadership or management experience while serving in any branch of the military

(1) The following experiences can substitute for up to 2 of the 3 years:

(i) Not less than 16 credit hours of post-secondary education in an agriculture-related field;

(ii) Successful completion of a farm management curriculum offered by a cooperative extension service, community college, adult vocational agriculture program, non-profit organization, or land-grant college or university;

(iii) One (1)-year experience as a farm laborer with substantial management responsibility;

(iv) Successful completion of an internship, mentorship, or apprenticeship in day-to-day farm management;

(v) Significant business management experience;

(vi) Honorable discharge from the armed forces of the United States;

(vii) Successful repayment of an FSA financed youth loan; or

(viii) Established relationship with a counselor in the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) program who has experience in farming or ranching, or with Agency-approved local individuals or organizations that are committed to providing mentorship in farming or ranching; or

(2) The 3-year requirement in this paragraph (d) will be waived if the applicant meets the requirements of both paragraphs (d)(1)(iii) and (viii) of this section.

(e) For an ML made for FO purposes, if an ML applicant has successfully repaid an FSA financed youth loan, the term of that loan may be used toward the 3 years of management experience required for a FO direct loan.

(f) And anyone who will sign the promissory note, must satisfy at least one of the following conditions:

(1) Meet the definition of a beginning farmer;

(2) Have not had a direct FO loan outstanding for more than a total of 10 years prior to the date the new FO loan is closed;

(3) Have never received a direct FO loan.

[72 FR 63298, Nov. 8, 2007, as amended at 79 FR 60744, Oct. 8, 2014; 81 FR 3293, Jan. 21, 2016; 86 FR 43391, Aug. 9, 2021; 87 FR 13124, Mar. 9, 2022]