USDA RURAL BUSINESS-COOPERATIVE SERVICE (RBS)
Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant (REDLG) Program

REDLG loans and grants are available to Rural Utilities Service (RUS) electric and telephone borrowers (such as Mid-Rivers) to assist in developing rural areas from an economic standpoint.

Grants are awarded to the utility based on an initial community seed project. The utility loans the grant money to the project, which must be sponsored by a non-profit or local government public entity, at zero percent with a maximum term of 10 years. When this loan is paid back, the repaid funds are placed in a revolving loan fund (RLF) to be loaned out to other community economic development projects.

Mid-Rivers is interested in pursuing a REDLG Grant that will create an RLF for our service area communities, but we need your help identifying a seed project to apply for the grant funds. The initial seed project loan must be sponsored by a public non-profit or local government and can be for:

• Business incubators
• Community development
• Facilities and equipment for education
• Facilities and equipment for medical care

Subsequent loans made from repayment of the initial loans made by RUS borrowers may be used for any rural economic development purpose, including loans to private entities, in accordance with a prior agreement between the borrower and RBS.

Please contact Mid-Rivers at mrtc@midrivers.coop if you think you have a plan for a good seed project. For the 2009 Fiscal Year, the maximum grant amount is $300,000. If more than $300,000 in loan funding is needed for the project, a combination loan/grant is also now possible. 

Loans are made at zero percent to community economic development projects on a pass-through basis through the cooperative and have a maximum term of 10 years. The utility must re-distribute the loan to a third-party recipient, which can be private or public organizations having corporate and legal authority to incur debt. For more information, visit the RBS Rural Economic Development Loans page. The maximum zero-interest loan amount for Fiscal Year 2009 is $740,000.

Since the utility is responsible for the loans made through this program, application by the third-party recipient must first be made to the utility. Click the links below for more information on applying to Mid-Rivers for a zero-interest loan through the REDLG program.

Summary of Loan Information (PDF)
Summary of Loan Information (Word)

Applying to Mid-Rivers (PDF)
Applying to Mid-Rivers (Word)

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