§ 4.1-01.1-07 — Agriculture diversification and development fund - Continuing appropriation (Effective through June 30, 2029)

North Dakota § 4.1-01.1-07

• Jurisdiction: North Dakota
• Title 4.1: Agriculture
• Ch. 4.1-01.1: Agricultural Products Utilization Commission

Text

appropriation. (Effective through June 30, 2029)
1. There is created in the state treasury the agriculture diversification and development
fund. The fund consists of all moneys transferred to the fund by the legislative
assembly, interest upon moneys in the fund, and payments of interest and principal on
loans made from the fund. Moneys in the fund are appropriated to the Bank of North
Dakota on a continuing basis for loan disbursements and administrative costs
pursuant to this section, and moneys in the fund are appropriated to the agriculture
commissioner on a continuing basis for grants and value-added agriculture facility
incentive funding pursuant to this section and section 4.1-01-27. The agriculture
diversification and development committee shall designate the amount available from
the fund for loans, interest rate buydowns, grants, and value-added agriculture facility
incentive funding.
2. Loans, interest rate buydowns, or grants under subsections 3 and 4 may be issued
from the fund to support new or expanding value-added agriculture businesses that
demonstrate financial feasibility, enhance profitability for farmers and ranchers, create
jobs, and grow the state's economy. Grants under section 4.1-01-27 may be issued
from the fund for infrastructure improvements necessary for the development or
expansion of new or existing value-added agriculture businesses. Value-added
agriculture businesses include food production or processing facilities; feed or pet food
processing facilities; commodity processing facilities; agriculture product
manufacturers; and animal agriculture production facilities, including swine, poultry,
dairy, and feed lot production facilities.
3. The Bank of North Dakota shall develop policies for loans and interest rate buydowns
from the fund in consultation with the agriculture diversification and development
committee. The Bank shall review loan applications. To be eligible for a loan under this
section, an entity shall agree to provide the Bank with information as requested. The
Bank may develop policies for loan participation with local financial institutions. The
Bank shall deposit in the fund all principal and interest paid on the outstanding loans.
The Bank may use a portion of the interest paid as a servicing fee to pay for
administrative costs, which may not exceed one-half of one percent of the amount of
the outstanding loans. The fund must be audited annually pursuant to section 6-09-29,
and the cost of the audit must be paid from the fund.
4. The agricultural diversification and development committee shall develop policies for
grants from the fund to support new or expanding value-added agriculture businesses,
including eligibility criteria, maximum grant amounts, and reporting requirements.
Based on recommendations from the agricultural diversification and development
committee, the agriculture commissioner shall distribute the grant funding.

5. The agriculture diversification and development committee shall develop a
value-added milk processing facility incentive program to provide grants.
a. Grant funding under this subsection is limited to the lesser of five million dollars or
five percent of the total construction cost of building or expanding a value-added
milk processing facility in the state capable of processing at least three million
pounds [1360777 kilograms] of milk each year.
b. Grant funding under the program is a reimbursement for infrastructure, site
acquisition, or other capital expenditures necessary for the value-added milk
processing facility construction, including natural gas supply, electricity supply,
roads, water lines, wastewater lines, storm water conveyance, or rail lines.
c. Upon achieving one hundred percent of the processing capacity of the
value-added milk processing facility, the agriculture commissioner shall distribute
the grant award from funding available in the agriculture diversification and
development fund.
6. The agriculture diversification and development committee may use funding available
in the agriculture diversification and development fund for in-state travel, per diem, and
related costs of administering grants under this section. The agriculture commissioner
may reimburse agriculture diversification and development committee members for
in-state travel, per diem, and related costs incurred associated with the program as
authorized under subsection 2 of section 4.1-01.1-08.
7. The agricultural diversification and development committee shall develop a value-
added agriculture production facility incentive program to provide grants. Grant award
funding for the value-added agriculture production facility incentive program under this
subsection is limited to thirty million dollars.
a. To be eligible for a grant award under the value-added agriculture production
facility incentive program, the production facility must:
(1) Be located within the state;
(2) Be a new construction project on an industrial-ready site with access to
existing municipal infrastructure;
(3) Have capital investment of at least three hundred fifty million dollars and
leverage regional agricultural producer capital investment to support the
facility's operations;
(4) Have a competing offer from at least one other midwestern state;
(5) Produce a new agriculture product or variant of an existing agriculture
product to provide a domestic supply of the product and to diversify the
market for agriculture products; and
(6) Have an estimated economic contribution of at least twenty million dollars
when fully operational based on an economic analysis conducted by the
Bank.
b. Grant funding under the program is a reimbursement for infrastructure, site
acquisition, or other capital expenditures necessary for the value-added
agriculture facility construction, including natural gas supply, electricity supply,
roads, water lines, wastewater lines, storm water conveyance, or rail lines.
c. Upon issuance of a certificate of occupancy for the value-added agriculture
production facility, the agriculture commissioner shall distribute a grant equal to
fifty percent of the total grant award from funding available in the agriculture
diversification and development fund.
d. Upon achieving fifty percent of the production capacity of the value-added
agriculture production facility, the agriculture commissioner shall distribute the
remainder of the grant award from funding available in the agriculture
diversification and development fund.
e. The Bank of North Dakota may extend a line of credit of up to thirty million dollars
to the agriculture commissioner to support a grant from the fund under this
subsection. The interest rate associated with the line of credit must be the
prevailing interest rate charged to North Dakota governmental entities.

f. If the agriculture diversification and development committee approves a grant
under this subsection, the agriculture commissioner may access the line of credit
under this subsection through June 30, 2029, to provide funding for the grant. Any
moneys borrowed from the Bank pursuant to this subsection must be transferred
to the fund. If the agriculture commissioner accesses the line of credit, the
commissioner shall request from the legislative assembly a deficiency
appropriation to repay the line of credit.
Agriculture diversification and development fund - Continuing appropriation.
(Effective after June 30, 2029)
1. There is created in the state treasury the agriculture diversification and development
fund. The fund consists of all moneys transferred to the fund by the legislative
assembly, interest upon moneys in the fund, and payments of interest and principal on
loans made from the fund. Moneys in the fund are appropriated to the Bank of North
Dakota on a continuing basis for loan disbursements and administrative costs
pursuant to this section, and moneys in the fund are appropriated to the agriculture
commissioner on a continuing basis for grants pursuant to this section and section
4.1-01-27. The agriculture diversification and development committee shall designate
the amount available from the fund for loans, interest rate buydowns, and grants.
2. Loans, interest rate buydowns, or grants under subsections 3 and 4 may be issued
from the fund to support new or expanding value-added agriculture businesses that
demonstrate financial feasibility, enhance profitability for farmers and ranchers, create
jobs, and grow the state's economy. Grants under section 4.1-01-27 may be issued
from the fund for infrastructure improvements necessary for the development or
expansion of new or existing value-added agriculture businesses. Value-added
agriculture businesses include food production or processing facilities; feed or pet food
processing facilities; commodity processing facilities; agriculture product
manufacturers; and animal agriculture production facilities, including swine, poultry,
dairy, and feed lot production facilities.
3. The Bank of North Dakota shall develop policies for loans and interest rate buydowns
from the fund in consultation with the agriculture diversification and development
committee. The Bank shall review loan applications. To be eligible for a loan under this
section, an entity shall agree to provide the Bank with information as requested. The
Bank may develop policies for loan participation with local financial institutions. The
Bank shall deposit in the fund all principal and interest paid on the outstanding loans.
The Bank may use a portion of the interest paid as a servicing fee to pay for
administrative costs, which may not exceed one-half of one percent of the amount of
the outstanding loans. The fund must be audited annually pursuant to section 6-09-29,
and the cost of the audit must be paid from the fund.
4. The agricultural diversification and development committee shall develop policies for
grants from the fund to support new or expanding value-added agriculture businesses,
including eligibility criteria, maximum grant amounts, and reporting requirements.
Based on recommendations from the agricultural diversification and development
committee, the agriculture commissioner shall distribute the grant funding.
5. The agriculture diversification and development committee shall develop a
value-added milk processing facility incentive program to provide grants.
a. Grant funding under this subsection is limited to the lesser of five million dollars or
five percent of the total construction cost of building or expanding a value-added
milk processing facility in the state capable of processing at least three million
pounds [1360777 kilograms] of milk each year.
b. Grant funding under the program is a reimbursement for infrastructure, site
acquisition, or other capital expenditures necessary for the value-added milk
processing facility construction, including natural gas supply, electricity supply,
roads, water lines, wastewater lines, storm water conveyance, or rail lines.
c. Upon achieving one hundred percent of the processing capacity of the
value-added milk processing facility, the agriculture commissioner shall distribute

the grant award from funding available in the agriculture diversification and
development fund.
6. The agriculture diversification and development committee may use funding available
in the agriculture diversification and development fund for in-state travel, per diem, and
related costs of administering grants under this section. The agriculture commissioner
may reimburse agriculture diversification and development committee members for
in-state travel, per diem, and related costs incurred associated with the program as
authorized under subsection 2 of section 4.1-01.1-08.