7 CFR § 1421.3 - Definitions.

§ 1421.3 Definitions.

The definitions in this section apply for all purposes of program administration. Terms defined in part 718 of this title and parts 1412 and 1425 of this chapter also apply, except where they conflict with the definitions in this section.

Administrative County Office is the FSA County Office where a producer's FSA records are maintained.

Basic loan rate means the loan rate established by CCC for a commodity before any adjustment for premiums and discounts.

Calling a loan is accelerating or moving forward the maturity date of an outstanding MAL. A MAL can be called when, as determined by CCC, the terms and conditions of the MAL note and security agreement are violated, a producer incorrectly certifies a loan quantity or makes any fraudulent representation with respect to obtaining a loan, removing or disposing of a farm-stored commodity pledged as collateral for a loan without authorization, to protect CCC's interest, or in emergency situations.

CCC means the Commodity Credit Corporation.

Charges means all fees, costs, and expenses incurred in insuring, carrying, handling, storing, conditioning, and marketing the commodity tendered to CCC for a MAL. Charges also include any other expenses incurred by CCC in protecting CCC's or the producer's interest in such commodity.

Chickpeas means any chickpea that meets the definition of a chickpea according to the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA), Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS).

(1) Small chickpea falls below a 20/64th sieve.

(2) Large chickpea stays above a 20/64th sieve.

CMA means a cooperative marketing association that is subject to regulations in Part 1425 of this chapter.

COC means the FSA county committee.

Commodity certificate exchange means the exchange, as provided for in § 1421.111, of commodities pledged as collateral for a marketing assistance loan at a rate determined by CCC in the form of a commodity certificate bearing a dollar denomination.

Crop means with respect to a year, commodities harvested in that year. Therefore, the referenced crop year of a commodity means commodities that when planted were intended for harvest in that calendar year.

Current net worth ratio means current assets minus current liabilities, divided by current liabilities, based on the financial statement provided in connection with a DMA application or a recertification for DMA status.

Department means the United States Department of Agriculture.

Deputy Administrator means the Deputy Administrator for Farm Programs, Farm Service Agency (FSA) or a designee of that person.

DMA Service County Office is an FSA County Office designated by CCC to accept, process, and disburse bundled peanut MALs and LDPs to a DMA. In the absence of a centralized MAL and LDP processing system for peanuts, a service county FSA office is necessary for entering MALs and LDPs made by DMAs into CCC accounting systems.

Designated Marketing Association (DMA) means an entity, or a subsidiary thereof, that performs marketing functions for peanut producers and is designated to handle MALs and LDPs for them. A DMA is eligible to perform those functions only if the DMA meets the eligibility criteria set out elsewhere in this part.

Drawdown account is an account titled to the DMA at a financial institution and funded at the discretion of CCC for the purpose of allowing the DMA to advance funds to producers who have applied for MALs and LDPs before a subsequent MAL or LDP is made to the DMA by an assigned FSA county office.

Electronic warehouse receipt (EWR) means a receipt electronically filed in a central filing system by an approved provider as provided in an executed, “Farm Service Agency Provider Agreement to Electronically File and Maintain Warehouse Receipts.”

FSA means the Farm Service Agency of the United States Department of Agriculture.

High moisture state means corn or grain sorghum having a moisture content in excess of CCC standards used to determine eligibility for MALs made by the Secretary.

Incorrect certification means the certifying of a quantity of a commodity for the purpose of obtaining a MAL or LDP in excess of the quantity eligible for such MAL or LDP or the making of any fraudulent representation with respect to obtaining MALs or LDPs.

Loan commodities means wheat, corn, grain sorghum, barley, oats, rice, soybeans, other oilseeds, peanuts, wool, mohair, dry peas, lentils, chickpeas, and other crops designated by CCC.

Loan deficiency payment (LDP) means a payment made in lieu of a MAL when the CCC-determined value, which is based on the current local price in a county, is below the applicable county loan rate. The payment is the difference between the two rates times the eligible quantity.

Loan settlement means farm stored commodities delivered to CCC and warehouse stored commodities forfeited to CCC, for the applicable crop years.

Locked in repayment rate means an announced repayment rate on a disbursed MAL that the producer has locked in for 60 calendar days. All locked in repayment rates expire within 14 calendar days before the loan maturity date. MAL can be repaid either at principal plus interest or the repayment rate in effect on the date the repayment is made. The repayment rate can only be locked in one time for a designated quantity and, if multiple locked in repayment rates are in effect for quantities under MAL that have not had a locked in repayment rate, the oldest rate is always applied first.

MAL means marketing assistance loan.

Market loan gain is the loan rate, minus the repayment rate on loans repaid at a rate that is less than the loan rate. A producer's adjusted gross income must be below the limit as specified in part 1400 of this chapter to receive a market loan gain.

Medium grain rice for the purposes of this part includes both short and medium grain rice as defined by the U.S. Standards for Rice.

Mohair means the hair sheared from a live Angora goat. Mohair does not include pelts, or hides or mohair shorn from pelts or hides.

Oilseeds means any crop of sunflower seed, canola, rapeseed, safflower, flaxseed, mustard seed, crambe, sesame seed, and other oilseeds as determined and announced by CCC.

Other crops designated by CCC means with respect to eligibilities for benefits under this part:

(1) Those crops harvested as other than grain, such as silage, haylage, earlage;

(2) Specific crops designated for grazing; or

(3) As otherwise designated by CCC.

Pulse crops means any crop of dry peas, lentils, and chickpeas as defined by CCC.

Recording FSA County Office is the FSA County Office that records eligibility data for producers designated as multi-county producers.

Rice means, unless otherwise noted, long grain rice and medium grain rice.

Secretary means the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture, or the Secretary's delegate.

Security for DMAs means a certified or cashier's check payable to CCC, an irrevocable commercial letter of credit in a form acceptable to CCC, a performance or surety bond conditioned on the DMA fully discharging all of its obligations under this part, or other form of financial security as CCC may deem appropriate.

Servicing agent bank means the bank designated as the financial institution for a CMA or a designated marketing association.

STC means the FSA State committee.

Unauthorized disposition means the conversion of any MAL quantity pledged as collateral for a farm-stored MAL without prior written authorization from the county committee.

Unauthorized removal means the movement of any farm-stored loan quantity from the storage structure in which the commodity was stored or structures that were designated when the MAL was approved to any other storage structure, whether or not such structure is located on the producer's farm, without prior written authorization from the county committee.

Unshorn pelt means the removed skin and attached wool from a slaughtered lamb that has never been shorn.

Warehouse receipt means a receipt containing the required information prescribed in this part and is:

(1) A pre-numbered, negotiable warehouse receipt issued under the authority of the U.S. Warehouse Act, a state licensing authority, or by an approved CCC warehouse in such format authorized and approved, in advance, by CCC;

(2) An electronic warehouse receipt (EWR) issued by such warehouse recorded in a central filing system or system maintained in one or more locations which are approved by FSA to operate such system; or

(3) Other such acceptable evidence of title, as determined by CCC.

Wool means the fiber sheared from a live sheep and includes, unless noted otherwise, graded and non graded wool.

[67 FR 63511, Oct. 11, 2002, as amended at 68 FR 37940, June 26, 2003; 70 FR 33799, June 10, 2005; 74 FR 15650, Apr. 7, 2009; 80 FR 120, 129, Jan. 2, 2015; 86 FR 70705, Dec. 13, 2021]