19 U.S.C. § 2346 — Conditions for financial assistance

**(a) Unavailability of firm’s resources; reasonable assurance of repayment** No financial assistance shall be provided under this part unless the Secretary determines— (1) that the funds required are not available from the firm’s own resources; and (2) that there is reasonable assurance of repayment of the loan. **(b) Interest rates** (1) The rate of interest on direct loans made under this part shall be— (A) a rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury taking into consideration the current average market yield on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States with remaining periods of maturity that are comparable to the average maturities of such loans, adjusted to the nearest one-eighth of 1 percent, plus (B) an amount adequate in the judgment of the Secretary of Commerce to cover administrative costs and probable losses under the program. (2) The Secretary may not guarantee any loan under this part if— (A) the rate of interest on either the portion to be guaranteed, or the portion not to be guaranteed, is determined by the Secretary to be excessive when compared with other loans bearing Federal guarantees and subject to similar terms and conditions, and (B) the interest on the loan is exempt from Federal income taxation under [section 103 of title 26](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title26-section103&num=0&edition=prelim). **(c) Maturity of loans** The Secretary shall make no loan or guarantee of a loan under [section 2344(b)(1) of this title](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title19-section2344/b/1&num=0&edition=prelim) having a maturity in excess of 25 years or the useful life of the fixed assets (whichever period is shorter), including renewals and extensions; and shall make no loan or guarantee of a loan under [section 2344(b)(2) of this title](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title19-section2344/b/2&num=0&edition=prelim) having a maturity in excess of 10 years, including extensions and renewals. Such limitations on maturities shall not, however, apply— (1) to securities or obligations received by the Secretary as claimant in bankruptcy or equitable reorganization, or as creditor in other proceedings attendant upon insolvency of the obligor, or (2) to an extension or renewal for an additional period not exceeding 10 years, if the Secretary determines that such extension or renewal is reasonably necessary for the orderly liquidation or servicing of the loan. **(d) Priority for small firms; servicing of loans** (1) In making guarantees of loans, and in making direct loans, the Secretary shall give priority to firms which are small within the meaning of the Small Business Act [[15 U.S.C. 631](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title15-section631&num=0&edition=prelim) et seq.] (and regulations promulgated thereunder). (2) For any direct loan made, or any loan guaranteed, under the authority of this part, the Secretary may enter into arrangements for the servicing, including foreclosure, of such loans or evidences of indebtedness on terms which are reasonable and which protect the financial interests of the United States. **(e) Loan guarantee conditions** The following conditions apply with respect to any loan guaranteed under this part: (1) No guarantee may be made for an amount which exceeds 90 percent of the outstanding balance of the unpaid principal and interest on the loan. (2) The loan may be evidenced by multiple obligations for the guaranteed and nonguaranteed portions of the loan. (3) The guarantee agreement shall be conclusive evidence of the eligibility of any obligation guaranteed thereunder for such guarantee, and the validity of any guarantee agreement shall be incontestable, except for fraud or misrepresentation by the holder. **(f) Operating reserves** The Secretary shall maintain operating reserves with respect to anticipated claims under guarantees made under this part. Such reserves shall be considered to constitute obligations for purposes of sections 1108(c) and (d), 1501, and 1502(a) of title 31. **(g) Fees to lenders which make loan guarantees** The Secretary may charge a fee to a lender which makes a loan guaranteed under this part in such amount as is necessary to cover the cost of administration of such guarantee. **(h) Maximum aggregate amount of outstanding guaranteed or direct loans** (1) The aggregate amount of loans made to any firm which are guaranteed under this part and which are outstanding at any time shall not exceed $3,000,000. (2) The aggregate amount of direct loans made to any firm under this part which are outstanding at any time shall not exceed $1,000,000. **(i) Preference for firms having employee stock ownership plans** (1) When considering whether to grant a direct loan or to guarantee a loan to a corporation which is otherwise certified under [section 2341 of this title](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title19-section2341&num=0&edition=prelim), the Secretary shall give preference to a corporation which agrees with respect to such loan to fulfill the following requirements— (A) 25 percent of the principal amount of the loan is paid by the lender to a qualified trust established under an employee stock ownership plan established and maintained by the recipient corporation, by a parent or subsidiary of such corporation, or by several corporations including the recipient corporation, (B) the employee stock ownership plan meets the requirements of this subsection, and (C) the agreement among the recipient corporation, the lender, and the qualified trust relating to the loan meets the requirements of this section. (2) An employee stock ownership plan does not meet the requirements of this subsection unless the governing instrument of the plan provides that— (A) the amount of the loan paid under paragraph (1)(A) to the qualified trust will be used to purchase qualified employer securities, (B) the qualified trust will repay to the lender the amount of such loan, together with the interest thereon, out of amounts contributed to the trust by the recipient corporation, and (C) from time to time, as the qualified trust repays such amount, the trust will allocate qualified employer securities among the individual accounts of participants and their beneficiaries in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (4). (3) The agreement among the recipient corporation, the lender, and the qualified trust does not meet the requirements of this subsection unless— (A) it is unconditionally enforceable by any party against the others, jointly and severally, (B) it provides that the liability of the qualified trust to repay loan amounts paid to the qualified trust may not, at any time, exceed an amount equal to the amount of contributions required under paragraph (2)(B) which are actually received by such trust, (C) it provides that amounts received by the recipient corporation from the qualified trust for qualified employer securities purchased for the purpose of this subsection will be used exclusively by the recipient corporation for those purposes for which it may use that portion of the loan paid directly to it by the lender, (D) it provides that the recipient corporation may not reduce the amount of its equity capital during the one year period beginning on the date on which the qualified trust purchases qualified employer securities for purposes of this subsection, and (E) it provides that the recipient corporation will make contributions to the qualified trust of not less than such amounts as are necessary for such trust to meet its obligation to make repayments of principal and interest on the amount of the loan received by the trust without regard to whether such contributions are deductible by the corporation under [section 404 of title 26](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title26-section404&num=0&edition=prelim) and without regard to any other amounts the recipient corporation is obligated under law to contribute to or under the employee stock ownership plan. (4) At the close of each plan year, an employee stock ownership plan shall allocate to the accounts of participating employees that portion of the qualified employer securities the cost of which bears substantially the same ratio to the cost of all the qualified employer securities purchased under paragraph (2)(A) of this subsection as the amount of the loan principal and interest repaid by the qualified trust during that year bears to the total amount of the loan principal and interest payable by such trust during the term of such loan. Qualified employer securities allocated to the individual account of a participant during one plan year must bear substantially the same proportion to the amount of all such securities allocated to all participants in the plan as the amount of compensation paid to such participant bears to the total amount of compensation paid to all such participants during that year. (5) For purposes of this subsection, the term— (A) “employee stock ownership plan” means a plan described in [section 4975(e)(7) of title 26](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title26-section4975/e/7&num=0&edition=prelim), (B) “qualified trust” means a trust established under an employee stock ownership plan and meeting the requirements of title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 [[29 U.S.C. 1001](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title29-section1001&num=0&edition=prelim) et seq.] and [section 401 of title 26](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title26-section401&num=0&edition=prelim), (C) “qualified employer securities” means common stock issued by the recipient corporation or by a parent or subsidiary of such corporation with voting power and dividend rights no less favorable than the voting power and dividend rights on other common stock issued by the issuing corporation and with voting power being exercised by the participants in the employee stock ownership plan after it is allocated to their plan accounts, and (D) “equity capital” means, with respect to the recipient corporation, the sum of its money and other property (in an amount equal to the adjusted basis of such property but disregarding adjustments made on account of depreciation or amortization made during the period described in paragraph (3)(D)), less the amount of its indebtedness.