Local Television Loan Guarantee Program

 

To facilitate access, on a technologically neutral basis, to signals of local television stations for households located in Nonserved Areas and Underserved Areas.

Deleted 10/17/2007 (The authorization for this program has expired.) 10.853 LOCAL TELEVISION LOAN GUARANTEE BOARD, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Guaranteed/Insured Loans. No loan guarantees have yet been awarded under the program. The first application window for the LOCAL TV program opened December 23, 2003 and closes April 21, 2004. Local Television Act of 2000, as amended, Title X, Public Law 106-553, 47 U.S.C. 1101-1110. A Corporation, partnership, joint venture trustee, or government entity, agency or instrumentality that proposes directly to provide, as a result of financing received under the LOCAL TV Program, local television broadcast signals to households in Nonserved Areas or Underserved Areas, is eligible for the loan guarantees. An individual is not eligible. Residents of Nonserved Areas and Underserved Areas and others who receive local television broadcast signals or other services resulting from the project funded by the guaranteed loan. None. This program is excluded form coverage under OMB Circular No. A-87. None. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372. The completed loan guarantee application consists of twelve parts: (1) an executive summary; (2) background information; (3) a business plan; (4) a financial forecast and information; (5) a certified system plan, (6) technical analysis and design; (7) lender information; (8) other financial information; (9) compliance certifications; (10) environmental impact information; (11) federal debt certification; and (12) an application fee. The LOCAL Television Loan Guarantee Board makes the final decision regarding the extension of loan guarantees based on the characteristics of the applications considered in light of priorities included in the establishing statute. Applications are accepted during an announced application window. Applications are reviewed for completeness, evaluated in depth, and then considered in a comparative manner. The precise amount of time for the process is dependent on the number and complexity of applications. Due to statutory limitations, no guarantee decisions will be made later than December 31, 2006. Not applicable. Not applicable. The LOCAL TV Act and the implementing regulations for the program state certain priorities to be used by the LOCAL TV Board in considering applications (see 47 USC 1103(e)(1)(A) and 7 CFR 2201.18). Chief among these are provision of service to households in nonserved areas and underserved areas. Within each of the two priority service categories, the LOCAL TV Board is to balance projects that served the largest number of households with those that serve isolated areas that are less likely to be served by the marketplace. Also, within each category, the board is to give priority to those that provide the highest quality service at the lowest cost per household. Guarantees of up to 80 percent of the principal only of loans made to qualified organizations by eligible lenders to finance the acquisition, improvement, enhancement, construction, deployment, launch, or rehabilitation of the means by which local television broadcast signals will be delivered to a Nonserved Area or Under served Area. The proceeds of a guaranteed loan may not be used for operating, advertising, or promotion expenses, or for the acquisition of licenses. Borrowers receiving loan guarantees under the LOCAL TV Program will be required regularly to submit performance reports in accordance with the stipulated performance schedule to be entered into between the borrower and the Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service. In addition the borrower may be required to have ongoing third-party inspection and valuation of collateral that secures the loan in accordance with the arrangements set forth in the guarantee. Borrowers receiving loan guarantees under the LOCAL TV Program will be required to submit annual audited financial statements with more frequent reporting possible, depending on the terms of the guarantee and the financial condition of the borrower. In addition, in accordance with 47 USC 1105 (a)(2), the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct an annual audit of the financial position of each borrower receiving a loan guarantee under this program. Borrowers will be required to retain records sufficient to indicate uses of all Loan funds in addition to the requirements of any regulatory bodies having jurisdiction over the borrowers. A loan guarantee issued under the LOCAL TV Program may not exceed an amount equal to 80 percent of a qualified loan in accordance with the LOCAL TV Act 47 U.S.C. 1103 (f)(2). Also, a guarantee may not be approved under the LOCAL TV Program for a project that is designed primarily to serve 1 or more of the top 40 designated market areas (as that term is defined in 17 USC 122(j)), in accordance with the LOCAL TV Act, 47 USC 1103 (e)(1)(C)(i). Loans receiving a guarantee through the LOCAL TV Program must have a loan term not exceeding the lesser of 25 years from the date of execution of the loan or the economically useful life of the primary assets to be used in the delivery of signals under the project being funded, in accordance with 47 USC 1103(d)(2)(E). Not applicable. Secretary LOCAL Television Loan Guarantee Board, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, STOP 1575, RM 2919-S, Washington, D.C. 20250-1575. Phone: 202-720-0530. Fax: 202-720-3724 Email: localtv@usda.gov. http://www.usda.gov/rus/localtvboard/ 12-1233-0-1-452. (Gross amount of loans subject to guarantee) FY 03 $0; FY 04 est $1,067,000,000 ($970,000,000 mandatory funding; $97,000,000 discretionary); and FY 05 est $0. Not applicable. Regulations have been issued for the program; see 7 CFR Parts 2200 and 2201. In addition, a Notice of application filing deadline was published in the Federal Register on December 23, 2003, on page 74434. Underwriting Criteria developed for the program are also available to the public through the program web site. Not applicable.