1、 https:/crsreports.congress.gov August 24, 2017Farm Bill Primer: The Marketing Assistance Loan ProgramBackground The Marketing Assistance Loan (MAL) program has been a significant feature of U.S. farm policy since the 1930s. The 2014 farm bill (Agricultural Act of 2014, P.L. 113-79) extended the MAL
2、 program for crop years 2014 through 2018. For details, see CRS Report R43448, Farm Commodity Provisions in the 2014 Farm Bill (P.L. 113-79). A MAL Is Nonrecourse The MAL programoperated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)provides both a floor price and interim financing for certain commodi
3、tiesreferred to as loan commodities. A participating producer may put a harvested loan crop under a nine-month, nonrecourse loan valued at a statutory commodity loan rate (Table 1). Nonrecourse means that USDA must accept the forfeited crop pledged as collateral for full payment of an outstanding lo
4、an. If local market prices for the crop increase above the loan rate (plus interest), a producer may repay a MAL and reclaim the crop. If market prices remain below the loan rate, then other program options (described below) are available to producers, including repayment of the loan at a lower rate
