USDA HB-1-3555, Chapter 19 (Loss Claims -), § 11.9

(b) Pursuant to section 212(e) of the Federal Crop Insurance Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994, Public Law 103-354 (the Act), 7 U.S.C. 6912(e), program participants shall seek review of an adverse decision before a Hearing Officer of the Division, and may seek further review by the Director, under the provisions of this part prior to seeking judicial review. Appendix 3 29 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. § 11.3 Applicability.

(a) Subject matter. The regulations contained in this part are applicable to adverse decisions made by an agency, including, for example, those with respect to: (1) Denial of participation in or receipt of benefits under, any program of an agency; (2) Compliance with program requirements; (3) The making or amount of payments or other program benefits to a participant in any program of an agency; and (4) A determination that a parcel of land is a wetland or highly erodible land.

(c) Mediation. A participant also shall have the right to utilize any available alternative dispute resolution (ADR) or mediation program, including any mediation program available under title V of the Agriculture Credit Act of 1987, 7 U.S.C. 5101 et seq., in order to attempt to seek resolution of an adverse decision of an agency prior to a NAD hearing. If a participant: (1) Requests mediation or ADR prior to filing an appeal with NAD, the participant stops the running of the 30-day period during which a participant may appeal to NAD under Sec. 11.6(b)(1) and will have the balance of days remaining in that period to appeal to NAD once mediation or ADR has concluded. (2) Requests mediation or ADR after having filed an appeal to NAD under Sec. 11.6(b), but before the hearing, the participant will be deemed to have waived his right to have a hearing within 45 days under Sec. 11.8(c)(1) but shall have the right to have a hearing within 45 days after conclusion of mediation or ADR. § 11.6 Director review of agency determination of appealability and right of participants to Division hearing.

(a) Director review of agency determination of appealability. (1) Not later than 30 days after the date on which a participant receives a determination from an agency that an agency decision is not appealable, the participant must submit a written request to the Director to review the determination in order to obtain such review by the Director. (2) The Director shall determine whether the decision is adverse to the individual participant and thus appealable or is a matter of general applicability and thus not subject to appeal, and will issue a final determination notice that upholds or reverses the determination of the agency. This final determination is not appealable. If the Director reverses the determination of the agency, the Director will notify the participant and the agency of that decision and inform the participant of his or her right to proceed with an appeal. Appendix 3 31 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. (3) The Director may delegate his or her authority to conduct a review under this subsection to any subordinate official of the Division other than a Hearing Officer. In any case in which such review is conducted by such a subordinate official, the subordinate official's determination shall be considered to be the determination of the Director and shall be final and not appealable.

(b) Appeals of adverse decisions. (1) To obtain a hearing under Sec. 11.8, a participant personally must request such hearing not later than 30 days after the date on which the participant first received notice of the adverse decision or after the date on which the participant receives notice of the Director's determination that a decision is appealable. In the case of the failure of an agency to act on the request or right of a recipient, a participant personally must request such hearing not later than 30 days after the participant knew or reasonably should have known that the agency had not acted within the timeframes specified by agency program regulations, or where such regulations specify no timeframes, not later than 30 days after the participant reasonably should have known of the agency's failure to act. (2) A request for a hearing shall be in writing and personally signed by the participant, and shall include a copy of the adverse decision to be reviewed, if available, along with a brief statement of the participant's reasons for believing that the decision, or the agency's failure to act, was wrong. The participant also shall send a copy of the request for a hearing to the agency, and may send a copy of the adverse decision to be reviewed to the agency, but failure to do either will not constitute grounds for dismissal of the appeal. Instead of a hearing, the participant may request a record review.

(d) Upon receipt of a communication knowingly made or knowingly caused to be made by a party in violation of this section the Hearing Officer or Director may, to the extent consistent with the interests of justice and the policy of the underlying program, require the party to show cause why such party's claim or interest in the appeal should not be dismissed, denied, disregarded, or otherwise adversely affected on account of such violation. Appendix 3 33 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. § 11.8 Division hearings. (a) General rules. (1) The Director, the Hearing Officer, and the appellant shall have access to the agency record of any adverse decision appealed to the Division for a hearing. Upon request by the appellant, the agency shall provide the appellant a copy of the agency record. (2) The Director and Hearing Officer shall have the authority to administer oaths and affirmations, and to require, by subpoena, the attendance of witnesses and the production of evidence. A Hearing Officer shall obtain the concurrence of the Director prior to issuing a subpoena. (i) A subpoena requiring the production of evidence may be requested and issued at any time while the case is pending before the Division. (ii) An appellant or an agency, acting through any appropriate official, may request the issuance of a subpoena requiring the attendance of a witness by submitting such a request in writing at least 14 days before the scheduled date of a hearing. The Director or Hearing Officer shall issue a subpoena at least 7 days prior to the scheduled date of a hearing. (iii) A subpoena shall be issued only if the Director or a Hearing Officer determines that:

(A) For a subpoena of documents, the appellant or the agency has established that production of documentary evidence is necessary and is reasonably calculated to lead to information which would affect the final determination or is necessary to fully present the case before the Division; or

(B) For a subpoena of a witness, the appellant or the agency has established that either a representative of the Department or a private individual possesses information that is pertinent and necessary for disclosure of all relevant facts which could impact the final determination, that the information cannot be obtained except through testimony of the person, and that the testimony cannot be obtained absent issuance of a subpoena. Appendix 3 34 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. (iv) The party requesting issuance of a subpoena shall arrange for service. Service of a subpoena upon a person named therein may be made by registered or certified mail, or in person. Personal service shall be made by personal delivery of a copy of the subpoena to the person named therein by any person who is not a party and who is not less than 19 years of age. Proof of service shall be made by filing with the Hearing Officer or Director who issued the subpoena a statement of the date and manner of service and of the names of the persons served, certified by the person who made the service in person or by return receipts for certified or registered mail. (v) A party who requests that a subpoena be issued shall be responsible for the payment of any reasonable travel and subsistence costs incurred by the witness in connection with his or her appearance and any fees of a person who serves the subpoena in person. The Department shall pay the costs associated with the appearance of a Department employee whose role as a witness arises out of his or her performance of official duties, regardless of which party requested the subpoena. The failure to make payment of such charges on demand may be deemed by the Hearing Officer or Director as sufficient ground for striking the testimony of the witness and the evidence the witness has produced. (vi) If a person refuses to obey a subpoena, the Director, acting through the Office of the General Counsel of the Department and the Department of Justice, may apply to the United States District Court in the jurisdiction where that person resides to have the subpoena enforced as provided in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (28 U.S.C. App.). (3) Testimony required by subpoena pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) of this section may, at the discretion of the Director or a Hearing Officer, be presented at the hearing either in person or telephonically. (b) Hearing procedures applicable to both record review and hearings. (1) Upon the filing of an appeal under this part of an adverse decision by any agency, the agency promptly shall provide the Division with a copy of the agency record. If requested by the appellant prior to the hearing, a copy of such agency record shall be provided to the appellant by the agency within 10 days of receipt of the request by the agency. Appendix 3 35 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. (2) The Director shall assign the appeal to a Hearing Officer and shall notify the appellant and agency of such assignment. The notice also shall advise the appellant and the agency of the documents required to be submitted under paragraph (c)(2) of this section, and notify the appellant of the option of having a hearing by telephone. (3) The Hearing Officer will receive evidence into the hearing record without regard to whether the evidence was known to the agency officer, employee, or committee making the adverse decision at the time the adverse decision was made. (c) Procedures applicable only to hearings. (1) Upon a timely request for a hearing under Sec. 11.6(b), an appellant has the right to have a hearing by the Division on any adverse decision within 45 days after the date of receipt of the request for the hearing by the Division. (2) The Hearing Officer shall set a reasonable deadline for submission of the following documents: (i) By the appellant: (A) A short statement of why the decision is wrong; (B) A copy of any document not in the agency record that the appellant anticipates introducing at the hearing; and

(C) A list of anticipated witnesses and brief descriptions of the evidence such witnesses will offer. (ii) By the agency: (A) A copy of the adverse decision challenged by the appellant; (B) A written explanation of the agency's position, including the regulatory or statutory basis therefore; (C) A copy of any document not in the agency record that the agency anticipates introducing at the hearing; and

(D) A list of anticipated witnesses and brief descriptions of the evidence such witnesses will offer. Appendix 3 36 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. (3) Not less than 14 days prior to the hearing, the Division must provide the appellant, the authorized representative, and the agency a notice of hearing specifying the date, time, and place of the hearing. The hearing will be held in the State of residence of the appellant, as determined by the Hearing Officer, or at a location that is otherwise convenient to the appellant, the agency, and the Division. The notice also shall notify all parties of the right to obtain an official record of the hearing. (4) Pre-hearing conference. Whenever appropriate, the Hearing Officer shall hold a pre-hearing conference in order to attempt to resolve the dispute or to narrow the issues involved. Such pre-hearing conference shall be held by telephone unless the Hearing Officer and all parties agree to hold such conference in person. (5) Conduct of the hearing. (i) A hearing before a Hearing Officer will be in person unless the appellant agrees to a hearing by telephone. (ii) The hearing will be conducted by the Hearing Officer in the manner determined by the Division most likely to obtain the facts relevant to the matter or matters at issue. The Hearing Officer will allow the presentation of evidence at the hearing by any party without regard to whether the evidence was known to the officer, employee, or committee of the agency making the adverse decision at the time the adverse decision was made. The Hearing Officer may confine the presentation of facts and evidence to pertinent matters and exclude irrelevant, immaterial, or unduly repetitious evidence, information, or questions. Any party shall have the opportunity to present oral and documentary evidence, oral testimony of witnesses, and arguments in support of the party's position; controvert evidence relied on by any other party; and question all witnesses. If appropriate, agency witnesses requested by the appellant will be made available at the hearing. Any evidence may be received by the Hearing Officer without regard to whether that evidence could be admitted in judicial proceedings. (iii) An official record shall be made of the proceedings of every hearing. This record will be made by an official tape recording by the Division. In addition, either party may request that a verbatim transcript be made of the hearing proceedings and that such transcript shall be made the official record Appendix 3 37 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. of the hearing. The party requesting a verbatim transcript shall pay for the transcription service, shall provide a certified copy of the transcript to the Hearing Officer free of charge, and shall allow any other party desiring to purchase a copy of the transcript to order it from the transcription service. (6) Absence of parties. (i) If at the time scheduled for the hearing either the appellant or the agency representative is absent, and no appearance is made on behalf of such absent party, or no arrangements have been made for rescheduling the hearing, the Hearing Officer has the option to cancel the hearing unless the absent party has good cause for the failure to appear. If the Hearing Officer elects to cancel the hearing, the Hearing Officer may: (A) Treat the appeal as a record review and issue a determination based on the agency record as submitted by the agency and the hearing record developed prior to the hearing date; (B) Accept evidence into the hearing record submitted by any party present at the hearing, and then issue a determination; or (C) Dismiss the appeal. (ii) When a hearing is cancelled due to the absence of a party, the Hearing Officer will add to the hearing record any additional evidence submitted by any party present, provide a copy of such evidence to the absent party or parties, and allow the absent party or parties 10 days to provide a response to such additional evidence for inclusion in the hearing record. (iii) Where an absent party has demonstrated good cause for the failure to appear, the Hearing Officer shall reschedule the hearing unless all parties agree to proceed without a hearing. (7) Post-hearing procedure. The Hearing Officer will leave the hearing record open after the hearing for 10 days, or for such other period of time as the Hearing Officer shall establish, to allow the submission of information by the appellant or the agency, to the extent necessary to respond to new facts, information, arguments, or evidence presented or raised at the hearing. Any such new information will be added Appendix 3 38 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. by the Hearing Officer to the hearing record and sent to the other party or parties by the submitter of the information. The Hearing Officer, in his or her discretion, may permit the other party or parties to respond to this post-hearing submission. (d) Interlocutory review. Interlocutory reviews by the Director of rulings of a Hearing Officer are not permitted under the procedures of this part.

(f) Timing of issuance of determination. The Hearing Officer will issue a notice of the determination on the appeal to the named appellant, the authorized representative, and the agency not later than 30 days after a hearing or the closing date of the hearing record in cases in which the Hearing Officer receives additional evidence from the agency or appellant after a hearing. In the case of a record review, the Hearing Officer will issue a notice of determination within 45 days of receipt of the appellant's request for a record review. Upon the Hearing Officer's request, the Director may establish an earlier or later deadline. A notice of determination shall be accompanied by a copy of the procedures for filing a request for Director review under Sec. 11.9. If the determination is not appealed to the Director for review under Sec. 11.9, the notice provided by the Hearing Officer shall be considered to be a notice of a final determination under this part. § 11.9 Director review of determinations of Hearing Officers.

(a) Requests for Director review. (1) Not later than 30 days after the date on which an appellant receives the determination of a Hearing Officer under Sec. 11.8, the appellant must submit a written request, signed personally by the named appellant, to the Director to review the determination in order to be entitled to such review by the Director. Such request shall include specific reasons why the appellant believes the determination is wrong. (2) Not later than 15 business days after the date on which an agency receives the determination of a Hearing Officer under Sec. 11.8, the head of the agency may make a written request that the Director review the determination. Such request shall include specific reasons why the agency believes the determination is wrong, including citations of statutes or regulations that the agency believes the Appendix 3 39 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. determination violates. Any such request may be made by the head of an agency only, or by a person acting in such capacity, but not by any subordinate officer of such agency. (3) A copy of a request for Director review submitted under this paragraph (a) shall be provided simultaneously by the submitter to each party to the appeal.

(b) Notification of parties. The Director promptly shall notify all parties of receipt of a request for review.

(c) Responses to request for Director review. Other parties to an appeal may submit written responses to a request for Director review within 5 business days from the date of receipt of a copy of the request for review.

(e) Equitable relief. In reaching a decision on an appeal, the Director shall have the authority to grant equitable relief under this part in the same manner and to the same extent as such authority is provided an agency under applicable laws and regulations. § 11.10 Basis for determinations. (a) In making a determination, the Hearing Officers and the Director are not bound by previous findings of facts on which the agency's adverse decision was based. (b) In making a determination on the appeal, Hearing Officers and the Director shall ensure that the decision is consistent with the laws and regulations of the agency, and with the generally applicable interpretations of such laws and regulations. (c) All determinations of the Hearing Officers and the Director must be based on information from the case record, laws applicable to the matter at issue, and applicable regulations published in the Federal Register and in effect on the date of the adverse decision or the date on which the acts that gave rise to the adverse decision occurred, whichever date is appropriate under the applicable agency program laws and regulations. § 11.11 Reconsideration of Director determinations. (a) Reconsideration of a determination of the Director may be requested by the appellant or the agency within 10 days of receipt of the determination. The Director will not consider any request for reconsideration that does not contain a detailed statement of a material error of fact made in the determination, or a detailed explanation of how the determination is contrary to statute or regulation, which would justify reversal or modification of the determination. (b) The Director shall issue a notice to all parties as to whether a request for reconsideration meets the criteria in paragraph (a) of this section. If the request for reconsideration meets such criteria, the Director shall include a copy of the request for reconsideration in the notice to the non-requesting parties to the appeal. The nonrequesting parties shall have 5 days from receipt of such notice from the Director to file a response to the request for reconsideration with the Director. Appendix 3 41 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. (c) The Director shall issue a decision on the request for reconsideration within 5 days of receipt of responses from the non-requesting parties. If the Director's decision upon reconsideration reverses or modifies the final determination of the Director rendered under Sec. 11.9(d), the Director's decision on reconsideration will become the final determination of the Director under Sec. 11.9(d) for purposes of this part. § 11.12 Effective date and implementation of final determinations of the Division. (a) On the return of a case to an agency pursuant to the final determination of the Division, the head of the agency shall implement the final determination not later than 30 days after the effective date of the notice of the final determination. (b) A final determination will be effective as of the date of filing of an application, the date of the transaction or event in question, or the date of the original adverse decision, whichever is applicable under the applicable agency program statutes or regulations. § 11.13 Judicial review. (a) A final determination of the Division shall be reviewable and enforceable by any United States District Court of competent jurisdiction in accordance with chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code. (b) An appellant may not seek judicial review of any agency adverse decision appealable under this part without receiving a final determination from the Division pursuant to the procedures of this part. § 11.14 Filing of appeals and computation of time. (a) An appeal, a request for Director review, or any other document will be considered ``filed'' when delivered in writing to the Division, when postmarked, or when a complete facsimile copy is received by the Division. (b) Whenever the final date for any requirement of this part falls on a Saturday, Sunday, Federal holiday, or other day on which the Division is not open for the transaction of business during normal working hours, the time for filing will be extended to the close of business on the next working day. Appendix 3 42 of 42 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. (c) The time for filing an appeal, a request for Director review, or any other document expires at 5:00 p.m. local time at the office of the Division to which the filing is submitted on the last day on which such filing may be made. § 11.15 Participation of third parties and interested parties in Division proceedings. In two situations, parties other than the appellant or the agency may be interested in participating in Division proceedings. In the first situation, a Division proceeding may in fact result in the adjudication of the rights of a third party, e.g., an appeal of a tenant involving a payment shared with a landlord, an appeal by one recipient of a portion of a payment shared by multiple parties, an appeal by one heir of an estate. In the second situation, a party may desire to receive notice of and perhaps participate in an appeal because of the derivative impact the appeal determination will have on that party, e.g., guaranteed lenders and reinsurance companies. The provisions in this section set forth rules for the participation of such third and interested parties. (a) Third parties. When an appeal is filed, the Division shall notify any potential third party whose rights may be adjudicated of its right to participate as an appellant in the appeal. This includes the right to seek Director review of the Hearing Officer determination. Such third parties may be identified by the Division itself, by an agency, or by the original appellant. The Division shall issue one notice to the third party of its right to participate, and if such party declines to participate, the Division determination will be binding as to that third party as if it had participated. For purposes of this part, a third party includes any party for which a determination of the Division could lead to an agency action on implementation that would be adverse to the party thus giving such party a right to a Division appeal. (b) Interested parties. With respect to a participant who is a borrower under a guaranteed loan or an insured under a crop insurance program, the respective guaranteed lender of reinsurance company having an interest in a participant’s appeal under this part may participate in the appeal as an interested party, but such participation does not confer the status of an appellant upon the guaranteed lender or reinsurance company such that it may request Director review of a final determination of the Division. Appendix 4 1 of 2 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. APPENDIX 4 AGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION RURAL DEVELOPMENT CONTACT INFORMATION Rural Development Website x Includes National, State Offices and SFHGLP Contacts. Click the link below: https://www.rd.usda.gov/programsservices/single-family-housingprograms/single-family-housing-guaranteedloan-program Housing and Community Facilities Programs Administrator Rural Development National Office 1400 Independence Avenue SW Room 5014, Mail Stop 0701 Washington, DC 20250-0701 SFHGLP National Headquarters Rural Development National Office-Headquarters 1400 Independence Avenue SW Room 5133, Mail Stop 0784 Washington, DC 20250-0784 Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Divisions Origination and Processing x Process Conditional Commitments and Issue Loan Note Guarantees Quality Assurance & Lender Oversight x Provide Program Quality Assurance and Lender Oversight Policy & Program Management x Provide Program Guidance and Issuance of Rules/Regulations System & Implementation Management x Analyze, Evaluate, Monitor and Manage the Effectiveness of SFHGLP Systems Click the link below for SFHGLP Contact List: https://www.rd.usda.gov/resources/usda-linctraining-resource-library Click on SFHGLP Contact List Appendix 4 2 of 2 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. RURAL DEVELOPMENT CONTACT INFORMATION Business Center Servicing Office Guaranteed Loan Division Single Family Housing Servicing Branch x Electronic Reporting System (default and portfolio) x Guaranteed Underwriting System Agreements x Lender Loan Closing Agreements and Guarantee Fees x Annual Fee Collection x Transfer of Servicing Form RD 3555-11 x Security Administration for GLS LINC x Servicing and Default Management Support x Loss Mitigation Quality Reviews and Lender/Servicer Oversight x Loss Mitigation Exceptions x Mortgage Recovery Advance (MRA) Payoff Requests Single Family Housing Claims Branch x Loss Claims and Lender Support x Post Liquidation Policies and Procedures x Lender Program Servicing Training and Coordination Click the link below for Servicing Contact Information: https://www.rd.usda.gov/sites/default/files/RDSFH-GRHServicingContacts.pdf Consolidated Help Desk Support Center x Guaranteed Underwriting System x E-Authentication Questions x Guaranteed Loan System (internal to Agency) Email: [email protected] Telephone: 800-457-3642 Select option 2 at 1st menu item (USDA Applications); then select option 2 at the 2nd menu item (RD) Appendix 5 1 of 6 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. APPENDIX 5 INCOME LIMITS The following USDA Income and Property Eligibility site is used to determine eligibility for USDA home loan programs. To determine income eligibility, visit http://eligibility.sc.egov.usda.gov/eligibility/welcomeAction.do. Note: Bookmark this site for future reference/use. To view the county income limits of a specific state: 1. From the Single Family Housing Guaranteed Eligibility navigation menu on the top of the page, select “Income Limits” to obtain a listing of all states’ income limits. Appendix 5 2 of 6 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. 2. Select the state. 3. Once a state is selected, the income limits utilizing this method will display all counties within the selected state, by number of persons in the household. 4. Some counties that are contained within a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) will be listed under the MSA. ______________________________________________________________________________ Appendix 5 3 of 6 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. 5. If no selection of state is made by the user, the user may utlize the right screen navigational tool to scroll by page through all states. To determine the eligibility of an individual or applicant/household: 1. From the Single Family Housing Guaranteed Eligibility navigation menu on the top of the page, select “Income Eligibility” from the Eligibility navigation menu. The following is a step-by-step guide in utilizing the website. 2. Select a state from the drop down menu. 3. Select a county within the state by utilizing the dropdown. Appendix 5 4 of 6 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. 4. Complete information on household members. This site is utilized to determine program eligible income and will include income from all household members, regardless if they are a party to the note to be taken. The “question” symbol - may be utilized to seek additional information on each topic. This site is dynamic. ¾ Enter the total number of people in the household. ¾ Enter the number of residents in the household under 18 years of age, disabled, or are full-time students. A deduction field for annual child care expenses will display on the following page. ¾ If the loan applicant or co-applicant is age 62 years of age or older, select “Yes.” A deduction field for eligible expenses will display on the following page. ¾ If there are any disabled household members, select “Yes.” A deduction field for eligible expenses will display on the following page. 5. Select “Next.” Appendix 5 5 of 6 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. 6. Complete the “Expenses and Deductions” portion of the page. Available data fields will appear based upon the responses provided on the “Household Member Information” page. 7. Complete the “Gross Monthly Income” section for all adult household members, regardless if a household member is a party to the note. 8. Select “Finish” to complete the calculation of program eligible income. Appendix 5 6 of 6 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. 9. An “Income Eligibility Determination Summary” will display. 10. The summary will outline the applicant’s eligibility for the Guaranteed Rural Housing Loan Program and the Section 502 Direct Rural Housing Loan Program. Appendix 6 1 of 20 Guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract. USDA may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not available through their guidance portal, except to establish historical facts. APPENDIX 6 INTEREST ASSISTANCE In 1991, the Agency provided interest assistance to eligible borrowers to enhance their repayment ability. Beyond 1991, interest assistance was not offered in connection with a SFHGLP guarantee. A relatively small number of loans providing interest assistance are still active. For those lenders who have interest assistance guarantees in their portfolio, it is important to administer the remaining loans correctly. Section 1, Interest Assistance, provides instructions for conducting annual and interim reviews, calculating interest assistance, and paying the lender’s processing fee. Section 2 of this Appendix provides guidance on what triggers recapture and how it is calculated.