Definitions. For the purpose of this subpart, the following terms will have the following meanings:1

Administrator means the Administrator of RUS.

Borrower means any organization which has an outstanding direct loan or insured loan made by RUS for the provision of electric or telephone service.

Cushion of credit payment means a voluntary unscheduled payment on an RUS note made after October 1, 1987, credited to the cushion of credit account of a borrower.

Deferment means a re-amortization of a payment of principal and/or interest on an RUS direct loan or insured loan for over either a 5- or 10 year period, with the first payment beginning on the date of the deferment.

Direct loan means a loan that is made by the Administrator pursuant to section 4 or section 201 of the RE Act (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) for the provision of electric or telephone service in rural areas and does not include a loan made to promote economic development in rural areas.

Financially distressed borrower means an RUS-financed borrower determined by the Administrator to be either:

In default or near default on interest or principal payments due on loans made or guaranteed under the RE Act;

A borrower that was in default or near default, but is currently participating in a workout or debt restructuring plan with RUS; or

Experiencing a financial hardship.

Insured loan means a loan that is made, held, and serviced by the Administrator, and sold and insured by the Administrator, pursuant to Section 305 of the RE Act (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) for the provision of electric or telephone service in rural areas and does not include a loan made to promote economic development in rural areas.

Job creation means the creation of jobs in rural areas, or in close enough proximity to rural areas so that it is likely that the majority of the jobs created will be held by residents of rural areas.

Project means a rural development project that a borrower proposes and the Administrator approves as qualifying under this subpart.

RE Act means the Rural Electrification Act of 1936, as amended (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.).

REA means the Rural Electrification Administration formerly an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture and predecessor agency to RUS with respect to administering certain electric and telephone loan programs.

RTB means the Rural Telephone Bank (telephone bank), a body corporate and an instrumentality of the United States, that obtains supplemental funds from non-Federal sources and utilizes them in making loans, operating on a self-sustaining basis to the extent practicable (section 401, RE Act).

RUS means the Rural Utilities Service, an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture established pursuant to Section 232 of the Federal Crop Insurance Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (Pub. L. 103-354, 108 Stat. 3178), successor to REA with respect to administering certain electric and telephone programs. See 7 CFR 1700.1.

Technical assistance means market research, product or service improvement, feasibility studies, environmental studies, and similar activities that benefit rural development or rural job creation projects.

Rules of construction. Unless the context otherwise indicates; “includes” and “including” are not limiting, and “or” is not exclusive. The terms defined in § 1703.302(a) include both the plural and the singular.