U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Angus King (I-ME) recently introduced legislation that would provide farmers and others in rural communities expanded capital access.
Specifically, the Access to Credit for our Rural Economy (ACRE) Act of 2023 would offer greater flexibility to more financial institutions to present affordable lines of credit to rural and agricultural borrowers.
“High inflation and rising interest rates are putting a strain on farmers and rural homeowners in Kansas and across the country,” Moran said. “Main street lenders must have the flexibility required to provide rural Americans with access to the capital needed to achieve homeownership and continue operating family farms.”
Moran said the measure aids the effort to boost rural housing and support the agricultural economy that plays a vital role in small towns nationwide.
“Rural communities across America are facing a serious affordable housing crisis,” King said. “It has simply gotten way too hard to find reasonably priced homes in our small towns. The ACRE Act is a common sense way to make home and farm ownership possible for more families by providing better access to low interest loans.”
Bill provisions includes granting community banks the same tax exempt status on certain earned interest that applies to farm credit institutions, expanding access to affordable agricultural and home loans to over 4,000 rural communities nationwide, and applying the exemption to single-family home mortgage loans in rural communities with fewer than 2,500 residents and for mortgages less than $750,000.