12 U.S. Code § 2128 - Loans, commitments, and technical and financial assistance

(a) Authorities

The banks for cooperatives are authorized to make loans and commitments to eligible cooperative associations and to extend to them other technical and financial assistance at any time (whether or not they have a loan from the bank outstanding), including but not limited to discounting notes and other obligations, guarantees, currency exchange necessary to service individual transactions that may be financed under subsection (b) of this section, collateral custody, or participation with other banks for cooperatives and commercial banks or other financial institutions in loans to eligible cooperatives, under such terms and conditions as may be determined to be feasible by the board of directors of each bank for cooperatives under regulations of the Farm Credit Administration. Each bank may own and lease, or lease with option to purchase, to stockholders eligible to borrow from the bank equipment needed in the operations of the stockholder and may make or participate in loans or commitments and extend other technical and financial assistance to other domestic parties for the acquisition of equipment and facilities to be leased to such stockholders for use in their operations in the United States.

(b) Additional authorities

(1) A bank for cooperatives is authorized to make or participate in loans and commitments to, and to extend other technical and financial assistance to a domestic or foreign party with respect to its transactions with an association that is a voting stockholder of the bank for the import of agricultural commodities or products thereof, agricultural supplies, or aquatic products through purchases, sales or exchanges, if the bank for cooperatives determines, under regulations of the Farm Credit Administration, that the voting stockholder will benefit substantially as a result of such loan, commitment, or assistance.

(2)

(A) A bank for cooperatives may make or participate in loans and commitments to, and extend other technical and financial assistance to—

(i) any domestic or foreign party for the export, including (where applicable) the cost of freight, of agricultural commodities or products thereof, agricultural supplies, or aquatic products from the United States under policies and procedures established by the bank to ensure that the commodities, products, or supplies are originally sourced, where reasonably available, from one or more eligible cooperative associations described in section 2129(a) of this title on a priority basis, except that if the total amount of the balances outstanding on loans made by a bank under this clause that—

(I) are made to finance the export of commodities, products, or supplies that are not originally sourced from a cooperative, and

(II) are not guaranteed or insured, in an amount equal to at least 95 percent of the amount loaned, by a department, agency, bureau, board, commission, or establishment of the United States or a corporation wholly-owned directly or indirectly by the United States,

exceeds an amount that is equal to 50 percent of the bank’s capital, then a sufficient interest in the loans shall be sold by the bank for cooperatives to commercial banks and other non-System lenders to reduce the total amount of such outstanding balances to an amount not greater than an amount equal to 50 percent of the bank’s capital; and

(ii) except as provided in subparagraph (B), any domestic or foreign party in which an eligible cooperative association described in section 2129(a) of this title (including, for the purpose of facilitating its domestic business operations only, a cooperative or other entity described in section 2129(b)(1)(A) of this title) has an ownership interest, for the purpose of facilitating the domestic or foreign business operations of the association, except that if the ownership interest by an eligible cooperative association, or associations, is less than 50 percent, the financing shall be limited to the percentage held in the party by the association or associations.

(B) A bank for cooperatives shall not use the authority provided in subparagraph (A)(ii) to provide financial assistance to a party for the purpose of financing the relocation of a plant or facility from the United States to another country.

(3) A bank for cooperatives is authorized to provide such services as may be customary and normal in maintaining relationships with domestic or foreign entities to facilitate the activities specified in paragraphs (1) and (2), consistent with this chapter.

(4) Definition of agricultural supply.—

In this subsection, the term “agricultural supply” includes—

(A) a farm supply; and

(B)

(i) agriculture-related processing equipment;

(ii) agriculture-related machinery; and

(iii) other capital goods related to the storage or handling of agricultural commodities or products.

(c) Applicable policies

Loans, commitments, and assistance authorized by subsection (b) of this section shall be extended in accordance with policies adopted by the board of directors of the bank under regulations of the Farm Credit Administration.

(d) Regulatory limitations

The regulations of the Farm Credit Administration implementing subsection (b) of this section and other provisions of this subchapter relating to the authority under subsection (b) of this section may not confer upon the banks for cooperatives powers and authorities greater than those specified in this subchapter. The Farm Credit Administration shall, during the formulation of such regulations, closely consult on a continuing basis with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to insure that such regulations conform to national banking policies, objectives, and limitations.

(e) Speculative futures transactions

Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter, the banks for cooperatives shall not make or participate in loans or commitments for the purpose of financing speculative futures transactions by eligible borrowers in foreign currencies.

(f) Installation, expansion, or improvement of water and waste disposal facilities

The banks for cooperatives may, for the purpose of installing, maintaining, expanding, improving, or operating water and waste disposal facilities in rural areas, make and participate in loans and commitments and extending other technical and financial assistance to—

(1) cooperatives formed specifically for the purpose of establishing or operating such facilities; and

(2) public and quasi-public agencies and bodies, and other public and private entities that, under authority of State or local law, establish or operate such facilities.

For purposes of this subsection, the term “rural area” means all territory of a State that is not within the outer boundary of any city or town having a population of more than 20,000 based on the latest decennial census of the United States.

(Pub. L. 92–181, title III, § 3.7, Dec. 10, 1971, 85 Stat. 605; Pub. L. 96–592, title III, § 304, Dec. 24, 1980, 94 Stat. 3444; Pub. L. 101–624, title XXIII, § 2323(a), Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 4013; Pub. L. 102–237, title V, § 502(e)(1), Dec. 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 1868; Pub. L. 102–552, title V, §§ 504, 505, Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat. 4131; Pub. L. 103–376, § 3, Oct. 19, 1994, 108 Stat. 3497; Pub. L. 107–171, title V, § 5402, May 13, 2002, 116 Stat. 350; Pub. L. 115–334, title V, § 5411(7), Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4679.)

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2018—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–334 struck out “Such regulations may include provisions for avoiding duplication between the Central Bank and district banks for cooperatives.” before “Each bank may own”.

2002—Subsec. (b)(1), (2)(A)(i). Pub. L. 107–171, § 5402(1), substituted “agricultural supplies” for “farm supplies”.

Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 107–171, § 5402(2), added par. (4).

1994—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 103–376, § 3(A), substituted “assistance to” for “assistance to (A)”, “bank for the import” for “bank for the export or import”, and “if the bank for cooperatives” for “and (B) a domestic or foreign party in which such an association has at least the minimum ownership interest approved under regulations of the Farm Credit Administration for the purpose of facilitating the association’s export or import operations of the type described in subparagraph (A): Provided, That a”.

Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 103–376, § 3(B), added par. (2) and struck out former par. (2) which read as follows: “A bank for cooperatives is authorized to make or participate in loans and commitments, and to extend other technical and financial assistance, to any domestic or foreign entity that is eligible for a guarantee or insurance as described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) with respect to transactions involving the Soviet Union (its successor entities or any of the individual republics of the Soviet Union) or an emerging democracy (as defined in section 1542(f) of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5622 note)) for the export of agricultural commodities and products thereof from the United States, including (where applicable) the cost of freight, if in each case—

“(A) the loan involved is unconditionally guaranteed or insured by a department, agency, bureau, board, commission, or establishment of the United States or any corporation wholly owned directly or indirectly by the United States; and

“(B) the guarantee or insurance—

“(i) covers at least 95 percent of the amount loaned for the purchase of the commodities or products; and

“(ii) is issued on or before September 30, 1995.”

1992—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102–552, § 504, inserted “at any time (whether or not they have a loan from the bank outstanding)” after “assistance” in first sentence.

Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 102–552, § 505, in introductory provisions, substituted “installing, maintaining, expanding, improving, or operating” for “the installation, expansion, or improvement of” and “extending” for “to extend”.

1991—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 102–237 designated existing provisions as par. (1), redesignated cl. (1) as (A) and inserted “or products thereof” after “commodities”, redesignated cl. (2) as (B) and substituted “subparagraph (A)” for “clause (1) of this subsection”, and added pars. (2) and (3).

1990—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 101–624 added subsec. (f).

1980—Pub. L. 96–592 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a), inserted provisions relating to currency exchanges and provisions relating to loans, etc., to domestic parties, and added subsecs. (b) to (e).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Funding To Be Consistent With Other Laws

Pub. L. 118–42, div. B, title VII, § 757, Mar. 9, 2024, 138 Stat. 114, provided that:

“In this fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, and notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the funds made available by this or any other Act may be used to implement section 3.7(f) of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 [12 U.S.C. 2128(f)] in a manner inconsistent with section 343(a)(13) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act [7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(13)].”