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South Dakota USDA Rural Development - Spring 2018 Edition
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Who –
USDA Rural Development and an eligible lender.
What – Provide lender a
loan guarantee for business or commercial term loans. The guarantee
percentage is based on the loan amount and is as follows:
- $5,000,000
or less – 80% guarantee except in certain situations can be up to 90%.
- $5,000,000
to $10,000,000 – 70% guarantee.
- $10,000,000
to $25,000,000 – 60% guarantee.
When – Applications are
accepted year-round.
Where – The borrower must be located
in an eligible rural area. Click HERE for the rural eligibility mapping
site. The lender can be located anywhere.
How - Contact Dana Kleinsasser at 605-352-1157 to discuss your next loan request.
In Fiscal Year 2018, extra points and priorities will be given to projects that fall in these categories (all other projects remain eligible, but those listed below have priority):
- Projects that support and create reliable and affordable high-speed internet connectivity through financing equipment such as distance learning and telemedicine, and health information technology, as well as internal and external wiring and publicly available wi-fi capability.
- Projects that support and manufacture commercially available unmanned technologies.
- Projects that support and increase agriculture, forestry, food production, innovative farm technology, agritourism, biotechnology and sustainable forest management. Examples include: grocery stores, distributors, value-chain actors, and educational/training facilities.
- Projects that advance energy security by boosting production of energy from natural gas, oil, coal, nuclear, and/or renewables.
- Projects that increase “Made in America” outputs in agriculture, manufacturing, forestry, and mining. Projects can include infrastructure, distribution, and value-chain participants.
- Projects that advance the quality of life via modern utilities, efficient transportation, access to medical services, including those for the treatment of and recovery from opioid addiction, and improved safety and education.
- Projects that advance career training and development, including apprenticeship opportunities, to provide rural communities, organizations, and businesses a skilled workforce such as technical colleges, business incubators, and vocational technical schools.
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If
your organization would
like to learn more about how your organization and customers can
benefit by using the Program, please contact Dana Kleinsasser to schedule a Lender training. Trainings
are tailored to meet the specific needs of your
institution and generally cover the following topics:
- Program
updates
- Eligibility
- Application
processing
- Program
comparison
- Secondary
market sales
- Servicing
requirements
For more information on the B&I Guaranteed Loan Program, CLICK HERE.
- Program Goal: To assist agricultural producers and small businesses in communities of up to 50,000 residents reduce energy costs and consumption by purchasing and installing renewable energy systems and making energy efficiency improvements in their operations.
- Program Link
Highlighted Project - USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program Assists South Dakota Rancher
Haven Stuck got his start ranching at an early age on his family’s ranch in Mellette, SD where they raised cattle, pigs and sheep. Stuck grew up working cattle and learning the difficult business of operating a sustainable agribusiness from his parents. After high school, Stuck attended SDSU where he earned a bachelor’s degree in animal science, and a master’s degree in economics. Military service called, and Stuck spent two years serving with the U.S. Army’s Third Armored Division in Germany.
When his military service was done, Stuck enrolled in law school at USD where he worked his way through to earn his Juris Doctor. Since 1975, Stuck has been a practicing attorney with Lynn, Jackson, Shultz & Lebrun in Rapid City, but never forgot his ranching roots. He now owns and operates a cattle ranch near Caputa, SD, just outside Rapid City.
Stuck says he’s always had a big interest in renewable energy but didn’t act on that interest until he heard about USDA Rural Development’s Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). He initially looked at wind generation, but settled on solar energy. He built a solar panel on the ranch in 2015 to help cut down on his electrical costs. The solar system Stuck installed now provides a portion of the power used at the ranch for the water system, calving facilities, sheds, heated shop and manager’s quarters.
Stuck received a 25% grant from the REAP program to help pay for his solar panel project which now produces enough electrical energy to save him almost half his annual electric usage on the ranch. West River Electric, the Stuck ranch utility provider, buys back any excess energy produced by Stuck’s solar system, which even in the winter months, continues to produce electrical energy. Since its installation, Stuck’s solar array has produced a total of 24,740 kilowatt hours of energy—more than enough to fully power a home for two years.
REAP also provides an opportunity for eligible applicants to borrow money for energy-efficiency or renewable energy projects from local lenders, who may then apply for federal guarantees on those loans. REAP is a competitive national program with two yearly competitions: October 31st for grants of less than $20,000 (total project costs of less than $80,000); and April 30th for any size grant/project.
Questions about the REAP program may be directed to the South Dakota Energy Coordinator, Jolene Pravecek, at (605) 655-3516 or jolene.pravecek@sd.usda.gov; or to your local Rural Development Business Specialist.
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Program
Goal: To provide rural areas of the state with additional means for pursuing diverse economic development opportunities, which can lead to job creation and the strengthening of local economies.
- Program Link
- Application Link
Highlighted Project - Oglala Sioux Tribe
In Fiscal Year 2016, USDA Rural Development awarded Rural Business Development Grant funds to the
Oglala Sioux Tribe to support the activities of the Oglala Sioux Tribe planning
office for regional planning and development.
These funds will be beneficial to the tribe as they carry out the initiatives
detailed in their Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Report.
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0% loans for
up to 10 years are available for business and community facility projects
- Program Goal: To provide funding for rural projects
through local utility organizations. USDA provides zero-interest
loans or grants to local utilities which they use to make 0% interest
loans for projects that will create and retain employment in rural
areas.
- Example of projects: fire trucks, medical equipment,
business incubators
- Deadline: Applications for this program are accepted
through your local office year-round. Program Resources are available
online (includes forms needed, guidance, certifications etc.)
- Program Link
Highlighted Project - Heartland Consumers Power District
In 2017, USDA Rural Development
awarded Heartland Consumers Power District a Rural Economic Development loan of
$384,237 and a grant of $300,000 to provide loans for economic
development. These funds were leveraged
with the Local Infrastructure Improvement Program
(LIIP) grant from the South Dakota Governor's Office of Economic Development. The funds were used to provide financial assistance
to Arlington Community Development Corporation to develop infrastructure
to extend the industrial park. The development has allowed Interstate
Battery System of South Dakota to expand. They are nearing completion on
a 14,000-square foot building that will include space for warehouse, testing
and offices. The project retained their existing 14 full time employees and
will create an estimated 5-6 full time employees over the next three
years. Existing businesses in the industrial park include Top Lot
Processors and Trans Canada. In 2016, Top Lot Processors caught on fire
and Heartland partnered to provide electrical incentives to encourage them to
rebuild in Arlington. “Heartland is one of a very limited number of
entities in the state of South Dakota who can provide access to REDLG funds.
It’s an invaluable program designed to spur growth, and its favorable terms
make it ideal for an infrastructure project like Arlington’s,” said Casey
Crabtree, Director of Economic Development at Heartland Consumers Power
District. He continued, “Our customers have a unique opportunity to utilize
these funds. We’re more than willing to partner with them to take these
next steps and see their cities grow and develop.”
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Equipping Local Leaders with Resources to Respond |
Many small towns and rural places have been impacted by opioid misuse. USDA has a website to assist rural leaders with resources, program information, and best practices to respond to this epidemic. Visit www.usda.gov/topics/opioids for more information.
USDA stands ready to partner with you to make a difference in your community.
USDA is approaching the opioid
misuse crisis with a dedicated urgency because it impacts the quality of life,
economic opportunity and rural prosperity. USDA is working with stakeholders and
communities to help deal with this crisis because effective solutions for the
opioid epidemic must be designed and built around the specific needs and
strengths of each community. USDA Rural Development's Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant Program can provide funding for healthcare related projects including buildings and equipment and projects that advance the quality of life via modern utilities, efficient transportation, access to medical services, including those for the treatment of and recovery from opioid addiction, and improved safety and education.
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Click the map to view contact information.
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The South Dakota Rural Development Business and Cooperative Services team is excited to share our quarterly RBS newsletter.
At Rural Development, we appreciate our partnerships and all the hard work put in to make Rural South Dakota the best it can be. We know that in working together, we can make an even bigger impact on our communities, so we are pleased to improve the communication to our partners through our newsletters. We plan to send a newsletter each quarter to our partners to keep you in the loop with our programs, tips, regulations, deadlines, etc.
If you have any questions, requests or materials you would like to share in our quarterly newsletter, please contact Dana Kleinsasser at 605-352-1157.
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