12 2 STA T . 1 958PUBLIC LA W 11 0– 2 46—J U NE 18 , 2008 ‘ ‘ (c)AUTHORI T Y O FSEC RET A RY .—In c ar r yi n gouts u b s e ction (b) , t h e Secretary— ‘‘( 1 ) m ay ma k ea v ai l able f rom loan or loan guarantee p ro - grams a d ministered by the R ural U tilities Service to q ualified utilities or applicants financing w ith an interest rate as low as 2 percent, and with e x tended repayment terms
‘‘(2) may waive nonduplication restrictions, matching fund requirements, or credit support requirements from any loan or grant program administered by the Rural Utilities Service to facilitate the construction, acquisition, or improvement of infrastructure; ‘‘( 3 ) may give the highest funding priority to designated pro j ects in substantially underserved trust areas; and ‘‘( 4 ) shall only make loans or loan guarantees that are found to be financially feasible and that provide eligible pro- gram benefits to substantially underserved trust areas. ‘‘(d) RE P ORT.— N ot later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this section and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to C ongress a report that describes— ‘‘(1) the progress of the initiative implemented under sub- section (b); and ‘‘(2) recommendations for any regulatory or legislative changes that would be appropriate to improve services to substantially underserved trust areas. ’ ’. SEC.610 6. GUAR A NT EES FO R B ON D S AND NOTES I SSUED FOR E L EC - TRIFICATION OR TELE PH ONE PURPOSES. (a) I NG ENERA L .—Section 313A of the Rural E lectrification Actof1 9 3 6 ( 7 U.S.C. 94 0 c – 1) is amended— (1) in subsection (b)— (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘for electrification’’ and all that follows through the end and inserting ‘‘for eligible electrification or telephone purposes consistent with this Act.’’; and ( B ) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the fol- lowing
‘‘(4) ANNUAL A M OUNT.— T he total amount of guarantees provided by the Secretary under this section during a fiscal year shall not exceed $ 1,000,000,000, subject to the availability of funds under subsection (e).’’; (2) in subsection (c), by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) and inserting the following: ‘‘(2) AMOUNT.— ‘‘(A) IN G ENERAL.—The amount of the annual fee paid for the guarantee of a bond or note under this section shall be equal to 30 basis points of the amount of the unpaid principal of the bond or note guaranteed under this section. ‘‘(B) P ROHI B ITION.—Except as otherwise provided in this subsection and subsection (e)(2), no other fees shall be assessed. ‘‘(3) PAYMENT.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A lender shall pay the fees required under this subsection on a semiannual basis. ‘‘(B) STRUCTURE DS CHEDULE.—The Secretary shall, with the consent of the lender, structure the schedule for payment of the fee to ensure that sufficient funds are Recom me nda-ti on s.W ai v e r a u t h orit y .
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