Texas Agriculture Code - AGRIC § 58.052. Agricultural Loan Guarantee Program

(a) The board shall administer a loan guarantee program that benefits eligible applicants who desire to establish or enhance a farming or ranching operation or an agriculture-related business.

(b) The board, either directly or through authority delegated to the commissioner, may grant to an eligible applicant a guarantee of a loan made by a commercial lender for the purposes prescribed by this subchapter.  The board by rule shall establish tiered loan guarantee limits.  To be eligible to be guaranteed under this subchapter, a loan with a term of more than one year must have a fixed interest rate.

(c) The amount that may be used to guarantee loans under this subchapter may not exceed three times the amount contained in the Texas agricultural fund.

(d) A loan guarantee recipient may use proceeds from the loan for working capital for operating a farm or ranch, including the lease of facilities and the purchase of machinery and equipment, or for any agriculture-related business purpose, including the purchase of real estate, as identified in the plan.  A loan guarantee is voidable by the board if the recipient uses loan proceeds for any purposes other than those identified in the plan.  The board shall include this restriction as a condition in each loan guarantee instrument executed under this subchapter.

(e) The board shall adopt an agreement, to be used between a commercial lender and an approved eligible applicant, under which the program provides a payment from money in the Texas agricultural fund for the purpose of providing a reduced interest rate on a loan guaranteed to a borrower under this subchapter.  The board shall adopt rules to implement this subsection.  The maximum rate reduction under this subsection per year for each borrower may not exceed three percentage points or an amount that results in $10,000 in interest savings for the borrower for the year.

(f) The board by rule shall establish a certified lender program under which the board may certify commercial lenders to participate in the agricultural loan guarantee program in order to expedite the processing of loan guarantee applications by the board.