42 U.S.C. § 8817 : US Code - Section 8817: General requirements regarding financial assistance

Search 42 U.S.C. § 8817 : US Code - Section 8817: General requirements regarding financial assistance

(a) Priorities, terms, availability, etc.
(1) Priority for financial assistance under this subchapter, and
the most favorable financial terms available, shall be provided to
a person for any biomass energy project that -
(A) uses a primary fuel other than petroleum or natural gas in
the production of biomass fuel, such as geothermal energy
resources, solar energy resources, or waste heat; or
(B) applies new technologies which expand the possible
feedstocks, produces new forms of biomass energy, or produces
biomass fuel using improved or new technologies.
Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to exclude financial
assistance for any project which does not use such a fuel or apply
such a technology.
(2)(A) Financial assistance under this subchapter shall be
available for a biomass energy project only if the Secretary
concerned finds that the Btu content of the motor fuels to be used
in the facility involved to produce the biomass fuel will not
exceed the Btu content of the biomass fuel produced in the
facility.
(B) In making the determination under subparagraph (A), the
Secretary concerned shall take into account any displacement of
motor fuel or other petroleum products which the applicant has
demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Secretary would result from
the use of the biomass fuel produced in the facility involved.
(3) No financial assistance may be provided under this subchapter
to any person for any biomass energy project if the Secretary
concerned finds that the process to be used by the project will not
extract the protein content of the feedstock for utilization as
food or feed for readily available markets in any case in which to
do so would be technically and economically practicable.
(4) Financial assistance may not be provided under this
subchapter to any person unless the Secretary concerned -
(A) finds that necessary feedstocks are available and it is
reasonable to expect they will continue to be available in the
future, and, for biomass energy projects using wood or wood
wastes or residues from the National Forest System, there shall
be taken into account current levels of use by then existing
facilities;
(B) has obtained assurance that the person receiving such
financial assistance will bear a reasonable degree of risk in the
construction and operation of the project; and
(C) has determined that the amount of financial assistance
provided for the project is not greater than is necessary to
achieve the purposes of this chapter.
(5) In providing financial assistance under this subchapter, the
Secretary concerned shall give due consideration to promoting
competition.
(6) In determining the amount of financial assistance for any
biomass energy project which will yield byproducts in addition to
biomass energy, the Secretary shall consider the potential value of
such byproducts and the costs attributable to their production.
(b) Terms, conditions, maturity, etc., for insured loans, and loan
guarantees
An insured loan may not be made, and a loan guarantee may not be
issued, under this subchapter unless the Secretary concerned
determines that the terms, conditions, maturity, security, and
schedule and amounts of repayments with respect to such loan are
reasonable and meet such standards as the Secretary determines are
sufficient to protect the financial interests of the United States.
(c) Application requirements
(1) No financial assistance may be provided to any person under
this subchapter unless an application therefor -
(A) has been submitted to the Secretary concerned by that
person in such form and under such procedures as the Secretary
shall prescribe, consistent with the requirements of this
subchapter, and
(B) has been approved by the Secretary in accordance with such
procedures.
(2) Each such application shall include information regarding the
construction costs of the biomass energy project involved, and
estimates of operating costs and income relating to that project
(including the sale of any byproducts from that project). In
addition, each applicant shall provide -
(A) access at reasonable times to such other information, and
(B) such assurances,
as the Secretary concerned may require.
(d) Reports and recordkeeping
(1) Every recipient of financial assistance under this subchapter
shall, as a condition precedent thereto, consent to such
examinations and reports regarding the biomass energy project
involved as the Secretary concerned may require.
(2) With respect to each biomass energy project for which
financial assistance is provided under this subchapter, the
Secretary shall -
(A) require from the recipient of financial assistance such
reports and records relating to that project as the Secretary
deems necessary;
(B) prescribe the manner in which such recipient shall keep
such records; and
(C) have access to such records at reasonable times for the
purpose of ensuring compliance with the terms and conditions upon
which financial assistance is provided.
(e) Contracts and instruments of Secretary concerned backed by full
faith and credit of United States
All contracts and instruments of the Secretary concerned to
provide, or providing, for financial assistance shall be general
obligations of the United States backed by its full faith and
credit.
(f) Contestability of contracts
Subject to the conditions of any contract for financial
assistance, such contract shall be incontestable in the hands of
the holder, except as to fraud or material misrepresentation on the
part of the holder.
(g) Fees for loan guarantees, etc.
(1) A fee or fees may be charged and collected by the Secretary
concerned for any loan guarantee, price guarantee, or purchase
agreement provided under this subchapter.
(2) The amount of such fee shall be based on the estimated
administrative costs and risk of loss, except that such fee may not
exceed 1 per centum of the amount of the financial assistance
provided.
(h) Deposit of amounts received by Secretary concerned
All amounts received by the Secretary of Agriculture or the
Secretary of Energy as fees, interest, repayment of principal, and
any other moneys received by either Secretary from activities under
this subchapter shall be deposited in the Treasury of the United
States as miscellaneous receipts. The preceding sentence shall not
apply to insured loans made under section 8813 of this title.