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ExpectMore.govExpectMore.gov home pageEXPECT FEDERAL PROGRAMS TO PERFORM WELL, AND BETTER EVERY YEAR.
 
Program Assessment

Program

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Agricultural Credit Insurance Fund Direct Loans

USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) provides direct loans to family farmers who may not qualify for agricultural credit through other commercial institutions. The program is designed to provide a temporary source of credit until the farmer is able to obtain financing in the private sector.

Rating

What This Rating Means

PERFORMING
Moderately Effective

In general, a program rated Moderately Effective has set ambitious goals and is well-managed. Moderately Effective programs likely need to improve their efficiency or address other problems in the programs' design or management in order to achieve better results.
  • FSA provides outreach through its nationwide network of service centers to socially disadvantaged farmers and farmers in geographically isolated areas that have few lenders. FSA direct loans provide credit in support of low farm family incomes, assist minority and beginning farmers, and help farmers adopt new technology that will make their farming operations more economical.
  • At the Federal level there are no other agencies that have the same specific goals and objectives as FSA direct loan programs.
  • Borrower abuse of FSA loan restructuring led to reforms in the mid-1990's that no longer allow borrowers that have previously defaulted on a loan to qualify for other capital loans. It is unclear if farmers will be able to meet their debt obligations over the long-term.

Improvement Plan

About Improvement Plans

We are taking the following actions to improve the performance of the program:

  • Developing performance measures that focus on a key goal of the program - improving the economic viability of farmers and ranchers - through strategic planning efforts and in-depth program evaluation.
  • Amending loan servicing requirements to reduce the administrative loan servicing requirements without impacting the effectiveness of the program.
  • Evaluating all program costs, including loan making and servicing, to identify opportunities to improve efficiencies.

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