- Assistant Secretary
means the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information.
- broadband buildout requirement
means the level of internet service an applicant receiving assistance under this section must agree, at the time the application is finalized, to provide for the duration of any project-related agreement between the applicant and the Department.
- broadband service
means any technology identified by the Secretary as having the capacity to transmit data to enable a subscriber to the service to originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics, and video.
- Commission
means the Federal Communications Commission.
- cybersecurity and grid security improvements
means investment in the development, expansion, and modernization of rural utility infrastructure that addresses known cybersecurity and grid security risks.
- development costs
means costs of—
- direct loan
means a loan made under section 904 of this title.
- eligible broadband service
means broadband service that has the capability to transmit data at a speed specified by the Secretary, which may not be less than the applicable minimum download and upload speeds established by the Federal Communications Commission in defining the term “advanced telecommunications capability” for purposes of section 1302 of title 47.
- eligible entity
means a legally organized entity that—
- eligible grantee
means a local government or municipality, peoples’ utility district, irrigation district, and cooperative, nonprofit, or limited-dividend association in a rural area.
- eligible program
means a program administered by the Rural Utilities Service and authorized in—
- eligible service area
means an area in which broadband service capacity is less than—
- farm
means a farm, as defined by the Bureau of the Census.
- incremental hydropower
means additional generation achieved from increased efficiency after January 1, 2005, at a hydroelectric dam that was placed in service before January 1, 2005.
- Indian tribe
has the meaning given the term in section 5304 of title 25.
- insured loan
means a loan made under section 935 of this title.
- middle mile infrastructure
means any broadband infrastructure that does not connect directly to end-user locations (including anchor institutions) and may include interoffice transport, backhaul, Internet connectivity, data centers, or special access transport to rural areas.
- qualified telephone borrower
means a person—
- renewable energy
means electricity generated from—
- renewable energy source
means an energy conversion system fueled from a solar, wind, hydropower, biomass, or geothermal source of energy.
- rural area
has the meaning given the term in section 950bb(b)(3) of this title.
- rural development program
means the following:
- Secretary
means the Secretary of Agriculture.
- substantially underserved trust area
means a community in “trust land” (as defined in section 3765 of title 38) with respect to which the Secretary determines has a high need for the benefits of an eligible program.
- territory
includes any insular possession of the United States.