In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Rural BusinessCooperative Service's intention to request an extension for a currently approved information collection in support of the Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan Program.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Rural BusinessCooperative Service's (RBS's) intention to request an extension for a currently approved information collection in support of the program for Guaranteed Loanmaking Business and Industry Loans.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Rural BusinessCooperative Service's (RBS) intention to request an extension for a currently approved information collection in support of the program for guaranteed loanmaking.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Rural Housing Service's (RBS's) intention to request an extension for a currently approved information collection in support of the program for the 1890 Land Grant Institutions Rural Entrepreneurial Program Outreach Initiative.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) is implementing a new rulemaking procedure to expedite making noncontroversial changes to its regulations. Rules that RBS judges to be noncontroversial and unlikely to result in adverse comments will be published as ``direct final'' rules. ``Adverse comments'' are those comments that suggest a rule

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS), an Agency in the Rural Development Mission Area of the United States Department of Agriculture, will hold a public meeting entitled ``Expanding Rural Renewable Energy Systems.'' The purpose of this event is to initiate a dialogue about how to implement a loan guarantee, direct loan, and grant program

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) adopts its interim rule published May 16, 2001 (66 FR 2701327014), as a final rule without change. This action makes the revision to the definition of small and emerging private business enterprise final. The intended effect will ensure that grantees can assist small businesses in rural areas without

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) announces the availability of approximately $1.5 million in competitive cooperative agreement funds allocated from fiscal year 2002 budget. RBS hereby requests proposals from Tuskegee University and the 1890 Land Grant Universities (1890 Institutions) interested in applying for competitively awarded

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

This Notice is to notify entities concerned with agricultural valueadded marketing issues and other interested persons that the Rural BusinessCooperative Service (RBS) is holding a public meeting for interested persons to express their views on implementing the Agriculture Innovation Center Demonstration Program to assist U.S. agricultural

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) announces the availability of approximately $33 million in competitive grant funds for fiscal year 2002 to help independent agricultural producers enter into valueadded activities. RBS hereby requests proposals from eligible independent producers, agricultural producer groups, farmer or rancher

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Rural BusinessCooperative Service's (RBS) intention to request approval of a new information collection in order to render service to associations of producers of agricultural, forestry, fisheries products and federations and subsidiaries thereof as authorized in the

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

As set forth in 7 CFR part 4279, subpart B, each fiscal year the Agency shall establish a limit on the maximum portion of guarantee authority available for that fiscal year
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that may be used to guarantee loans with a guarantee fee of 1 percent or guaranteed loans with a guarantee percentage exceeding 80 percent.

Allowing the

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS), an Agency within the Rural Development mission area, announces the availability of grants of up to $50,000 per application from the Rural Business Opportunity Grant (RBOG) Program for fiscal year (FY) 2002, to be competitively awarded. For multistate projects, grant funds of up to $150,000 will be

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS), an Agency within the Rural Development mission area, announces the availability of two individual grants; one single $500,000 grant from the passenger transportation funds appropriated for the RBS Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) program and another single $250,000 grant from the Federally

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service hereby announces the maximum dollar amount on loan and grant awards under the Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant (REDLG) program for fiscal year (FY) 2002. The maximum dollar award on zerointerest loans for FY 2002 is $450,000. The maximum dollar award on grants for FY 2002 is $200,000. The maximum

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE : Rural Business-Cooperative Service