Agenda - Council - 10/22/2019 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Borrowing in Anticipation of Bonds After authorizing a bond issue, an EDA may borrow funds to provide money immediately required for the project, but the loan must not exceed the amount of the bonds. The EDA must approve a resolution stating the terms of the loan. The due date for the loan may not be for more than 12 months from the date of the loan origination and may be repaid with interest from the proceeds of the bonds when the bonds are issued and delivered to the bond purchasers. The loan must not be obtained from any Commissioner of the EDA or from any corporation, association, or other institution of which a Commissioner is a stockholder or officer (Minn. Stat. § 469.101, Subd. 19). Revolving Loan Funds Small business growth in most communities provides the greatest opportunity for new investment and job development. However, because constraints on capital markets, financial institutions may be unable or unwilling to provide a complete financing package, and many good companies end up with marginal long-term fmancing. Businesses and financial institutions invest dollars in projects to make a profit and to earn a return on that investment. Unless the project offers the promise of a positive return, it is difficult to sell a prospective investor on locating or expanding a business. Stimulating investment requires impacting a business and a bank's spending decisions. An EDA can impact business spending decisions by providing an opportunity where rates of return on investment are attractive and competitive. Many EDAs do this by operating a local Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) designed to facilitate small business investment. The typical goal of a local RLF is to leverage private sector investment by filling the capital market gap for financing long-term assets. Most RLFs provide a cost advantage to the business to lessen their financial constraints and meet the community's goal of increasing productivity and creating new, permanent jobs. The RLF can provide lower interest payments, more flexible equity requirements, longer terms, deferred principle payments and a subordinate collateral position to the bank. The type of businesses that are eligible for loan funds type of businesses that are eligible for loan funds will depend on the loan guidelines established by the particular EDA. An RLF can be designed in several different ways. The most common type of RLFs structure is the direct loan to the business. Direct loans are made to the business with a separate set of loan documents and collateral to secure the loan. These loans are typically made to fill the gap in a development project. The second type of funding structure is a loan guarantee. The EDA provides a partial guarantee to the private lender to ensure repayment of the loan and to limit the risk to the private lender. This type of activity provides several advantages to the EDA, notably, smaller capitalization requirements, increased leverage of funds, and limited administrative activity 24