Jim Monke
Specialist in Agricultural Policy
The federal government has long provided credit assistance to farmers, in response to insufficient lending in rural areas or a desire for targeted lending to disadvantaged groups. One federal lender is the Farm Service Agency (FSA) in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). It issues direct loans to farmers who cannot qualify for regular credit, and guarantees repayment of loans made by other lenders. Thus, FSA is called a lender of last resort. Of about $240 billion in total farm debt, FSA provides about 2% through direct loans, and guarantees about another 4%-5% of loans. Another federally related lender is the Farm Credit System (FCS), a cooperatively owned, federally chartered lender with a statutory mandate to serve agriculture-related borrowers. FCS makes loans to creditworthy farmers, and is not a lender of last resort. FCS accounts for about 40% of farm debt. Commercial banks are the largest farm lender and hold 44% of total farm debt.
While the global financial crisis that escalated in 2008 was slower to affect agricultural balance sheets than the housing market, it has begun to take its toll. Net farm income fell by 30% in 2009, reducing some farmers’ ability to repay loans—particularly among dairy, hog, and poultry farms. But farm income rebounded by one-third in 2010, to near record levels. Delinquency rates (loans that are more than 30 days past due) on residential mortgages began to rise in 2005, but delinquency rates for agricultural loans did not begin to rise until mid-2008 and have not risen as quickly. The delinquency rate on residential mortgages may have peaked at 11.3% in June 2010; it reached 3.4% for agricultural loans in September 2010.
Because of the financial turmoil, the USDA farm loan program has seen significantly higher demand. In FY2010, FSA had $6 billion of authority for loans and guarantees, up from $3.4 billion a few years ago. An FY2010 supplemental appropriation added over $950 million in loan authority to a $5.1 billion regular loan authority. The FY2011 appropriation proposed by the Senate in the 111th Congress would have provided $5.4 billion of loans and guarantees to help to forestall as much need for a supplemental if loan demand remains high.
Term limits have been part of the USDA farm loan program since 1992. They encourage farmers to graduate to commercial loans by placing a maximum number of years that farmers are eligible. However, Congress had suspended application of the guaranteed operating loan term limit to prevent some farmers from being denied credit. At the end of 2010, Congress let that suspension expire, and now the term limit statute is being applied. USDA says that 4,200 borrowers in 2010 had reached the limit and would not qualify for more loans. The 2008 farm bill had renewed a prior suspension of this term limit, but only through 2010. Two bills in the 111th Congress (S. 3221 and H.R. 6418) would have extended the suspension of term limits for two more years.
Also, because of the financial crisis and debt repayment problems, farmers’ use of mediation services has increased. USDA has a grant program that provides matching funds through the states to mediators. This $4 million program was reauthorized through FY2015 (P.L. 111-233).
Finally, FCS is seeking to expand its authority through a broader list of permissible investments. The 2008 farm bill did not expand FCS’s lending authority, but a proposed rule would allow FCS to “invest” through bonds or other assets to finance certain rural infrastructure, housing facilities, and rural business investment companies. Under statute, FCS cannot be a lender to these nonfarm entities. Disposition of the proposed rule awaits action by the Farm Credit Administration (FCA), the federal regulator. FCA’s fall 2010 regulatory agenda listed the rule as “undetermined” and did not anticipate a decision. Congress does not have a role in this regulatory decision.
Date of Report: January 27, 2011
Number of Pages: 21
Order Number: RS21977
Price: $29.95
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Document available via e-mail as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail Penny Hill Press or call us at 301-253-0881. Provide a Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover card number, expiration date, and name on the card. Indicate whether you want e-mail or postal delivery. Phone orders are preferred and receive priority processing.
Specialist in Agricultural Policy
The federal government has long provided credit assistance to farmers, in response to insufficient lending in rural areas or a desire for targeted lending to disadvantaged groups. One federal lender is the Farm Service Agency (FSA) in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). It issues direct loans to farmers who cannot qualify for regular credit, and guarantees repayment of loans made by other lenders. Thus, FSA is called a lender of last resort. Of about $240 billion in total farm debt, FSA provides about 2% through direct loans, and guarantees about another 4%-5% of loans. Another federally related lender is the Farm Credit System (FCS), a cooperatively owned, federally chartered lender with a statutory mandate to serve agriculture-related borrowers. FCS makes loans to creditworthy farmers, and is not a lender of last resort. FCS accounts for about 40% of farm debt. Commercial banks are the largest farm lender and hold 44% of total farm debt.
While the global financial crisis that escalated in 2008 was slower to affect agricultural balance sheets than the housing market, it has begun to take its toll. Net farm income fell by 30% in 2009, reducing some farmers’ ability to repay loans—particularly among dairy, hog, and poultry farms. But farm income rebounded by one-third in 2010, to near record levels. Delinquency rates (loans that are more than 30 days past due) on residential mortgages began to rise in 2005, but delinquency rates for agricultural loans did not begin to rise until mid-2008 and have not risen as quickly. The delinquency rate on residential mortgages may have peaked at 11.3% in June 2010; it reached 3.4% for agricultural loans in September 2010.
Because of the financial turmoil, the USDA farm loan program has seen significantly higher demand. In FY2010, FSA had $6 billion of authority for loans and guarantees, up from $3.4 billion a few years ago. An FY2010 supplemental appropriation added over $950 million in loan authority to a $5.1 billion regular loan authority. The FY2011 appropriation proposed by the Senate in the 111th Congress would have provided $5.4 billion of loans and guarantees to help to forestall as much need for a supplemental if loan demand remains high.
Term limits have been part of the USDA farm loan program since 1992. They encourage farmers to graduate to commercial loans by placing a maximum number of years that farmers are eligible. However, Congress had suspended application of the guaranteed operating loan term limit to prevent some farmers from being denied credit. At the end of 2010, Congress let that suspension expire, and now the term limit statute is being applied. USDA says that 4,200 borrowers in 2010 had reached the limit and would not qualify for more loans. The 2008 farm bill had renewed a prior suspension of this term limit, but only through 2010. Two bills in the 111th Congress (S. 3221 and H.R. 6418) would have extended the suspension of term limits for two more years.
Also, because of the financial crisis and debt repayment problems, farmers’ use of mediation services has increased. USDA has a grant program that provides matching funds through the states to mediators. This $4 million program was reauthorized through FY2015 (P.L. 111-233).
Finally, FCS is seeking to expand its authority through a broader list of permissible investments. The 2008 farm bill did not expand FCS’s lending authority, but a proposed rule would allow FCS to “invest” through bonds or other assets to finance certain rural infrastructure, housing facilities, and rural business investment companies. Under statute, FCS cannot be a lender to these nonfarm entities. Disposition of the proposed rule awaits action by the Farm Credit Administration (FCA), the federal regulator. FCA’s fall 2010 regulatory agenda listed the rule as “undetermined” and did not anticipate a decision. Congress does not have a role in this regulatory decision.
Date of Report: January 27, 2011
Number of Pages: 21
Order Number: RS21977
Price: $29.95
Follow us on TWITTER at http://www.twitter.com/alertsPHP or #CRSreports
Document available via e-mail as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail Penny Hill Press or call us at 301-253-0881. Provide a Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover card number, expiration date, and name on the card. Indicate whether you want e-mail or postal delivery. Phone orders are preferred and receive priority processing.
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