Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 107 Part 2.djvu/412

 107 STAT. 1364 PUBLIC LAW 103-129—NOV. 1, 1993 (B) by striking "city, village, or borough having a population in excess of fifteen hundred inhabitants" and inserting "urban area, as defined by the Bureau of the Census". (4) GENERAL PROHIBITIONS.—Section 18 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 918) is amended— (A) by inserting "(a) No CONSIDERATION OF BORROW- ER'S LEVEL OF GENERAL FUNDS.—" before "The Administrator"; and (B) by adding at the end the following new subsections: "(b) LOAN ORIGINATION FEES. —The Administrator and the Governor of the telephone bank may not charge any fee or charge not expressly provided in this Act in connection with any loan made or guaranteed under this Act. "(c) CONSULTANTS. — " (1) IN GENERAL. — To facilitate timely action on applications by borrowers for financial assistance under this Act and for approvals required of the Rural Electrification Administration piirsuant to the terms of outstanding loan or security instruments or otherwise, the Administrator may use consultants funded by the borrower, paid for out of the general funds of the borrower, for financial, legal, engineering, and other technical advice and services in connection with the review of the application by the Rural Electrification Administration. "(2) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST. — The Administrator shall establish procedures for the selection and the provision of technical services by consultants to ensure that the consultants have no financial or other conflicts of interest in the outcome of the application of the borrower. "(3) PAYMENT OF COSTS.— The Administrator may not, without the consent of the borrower, require, as a condition of processing an application for approval, that the borrower agree to pay the costs, fees, and expenses of consultants hired to provide technical or advisory services to the Administrator. "(4) CONTRACTS, GRANTS, AND AGREEMENTS.— The Administrator may enter into such contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements as are necessary to carry out this section. " (5) USE OF CONSULTANTS. —Nothing in this subsection shall limit the authority of the Administrator to retain the services of consultants from funds made available to the Administrator or otherwise.". (5) DEFINITION OF RURAL AREA. —Section 203(b) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 924(b)) is amended by striking "one thousand five hundred" and inserting "5,000". (6) INSURED LOANS. — Section 305 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 935) (as amended by subsection (a)(D) is further amended— (A) by striking "SEC. 305. INSURED LOANS; INTEREST RATES AND LENDING LEVELS. —(a) The" and inserting the following: "SEC. SOS. INSURED LOANS; INTEREST RATES AND LENDING LEVELS. "(a) IN GENERAL.— The"; and (B) in subsection (b), by striking "(b) Loans" and inserting "(b) INSURED LOANS. —Loans". (7) ELIGIBILITY OF DISTRIBUTION BORROWERS; ADMINISTRA- TIVE PROHIBITIONS.—Title III of such Act is amended by inserting after section 306B (7 U.S.C. 936b) the following new sections: r

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