Subpart A General Information
Subpart B Program Description
Subpart C Preparation of a Proposal
Subpart D Submission of a Proposal
Subpart E Proposal Review and Evaluation
Subpart F Supplementary Information

Terms Used In 7 CFR Part 3405 - Higher Education Challenge Grants Program

  • Acceptance number: means the number in a sampling plan that indicates the maximum number of deviants permitted in a sample of a lot that meets a specific requirement. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Act: means the applicable provisions of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (60 Stat. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Administrator: means the Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Advice and consent: Under the Constitution, presidential nominations for executive and judicial posts take effect only when confirmed by the Senate, and international treaties become effective only when the Senate approves them by a two-thirds vote.
  • Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
  • Allegation: something that someone says happened.
  • Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
  • Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
  • Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
  • Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
  • Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
  • Applicant: means any interested party who requests inspection service under the regulations in this part. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Appraisal: A determination of property value.
  • Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
  • Approved plant: means any plant in which the facilities, sanitation, and methods of operation have been surveyed and approved for specific product(s) by the Administrator as suitable and adequate for inspection or grading service in accordance with §§ 52. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
  • Attorney-in-fact: A person who, acting as an agent, is given written authorization by another person to transact business for him (her) out of court.
  • Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
  • Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
  • Case: means the number of containers (cased or uncased) which, by the particular industry are ordinarily packed in a shipping container. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Collection of information: includes any requirement or request for persons to obtain, maintain, retain, report, or publicly disclose information. See 5 CFR 1320.3
  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Condition: means the degree of soundness of the product which may affect its merchantability and includes, but is not limited to those factors which are subject to change as a result of age, improper preparation and processing, improper packaging, improper storage or improper handling. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Decedent: A deceased person.
  • Department: means the U. See 7 CFR 51.2
  • Department: means the United States Department of Agriculture. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
  • Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. Source:
  • Donor: The person who makes a gift.
  • Electronic funds transfer: The transfer of money between accounts by consumer electronic systems-such as automated teller machines (ATMs) and electronic payment of bills-rather than by check or cash. (Wire transfers, checks, drafts, and paper instruments do not fall into this category.) Source: OCC
  • Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
  • Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • facility: refers to both the physical structure financed, and the resulting service provided to rural residents or rural businesses. See 7 CFR 5001.3
  • Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
  • Federal Reserve System: The central bank of the United States. The Fed, as it is commonly called, regulates the U.S. monetary and financial system. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central governmental agency in Washington, D.C. (the Board of Governors) and twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks in major cities throughout the United States. Source: OCC
  • Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Fixed Rate: Having a "fixed" rate means that the APR doesn't change based on fluctuations of some external rate (such as the "Prime Rate"). In other words, a fixed rate is a rate that is not a variable rate. A fixed APR can change over time, in several circumstances:
    • You are late making a payment or commit some other default, triggering an increase to a penalty rate
    • The bank changes the terms of your account and you do not reject the change.
    • The rate expires (if the rate was fixed for only a certain period of time).
  • Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. Source: OCC
  • Germane: On the subject of the pending bill or other business; a strict standard of relevance.
  • Grace period: The number of days you'll have to pay your bill for purchases in full without triggering a finance charge. Source: Federal Reserve
  • Grade: means a class or rank of quality. See 7 CFR 51.2
  • grader: means any employee of the Department authorized by the Secretary or any other person licensed by the Secretary to investigate, sample, inspect, and certify in accordance with the regulations in this part to any interested party the class, quality and condition of processed products covered in this part and to perform related duties in connection with the inspection service. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Guarantor: A party who agrees to be responsible for the payment of another party's debts should that party default. Source: OCC
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. Source: FDIC
  • Inspection certificate: means a statement, either written or printed, issued pursuant to the regulations in this part, setting forth in addition to appropriate descriptive information relative to a processed product, and the container thereof, the quality and condition, or any part thereof, of the product and may include a description of the conditions under which the product is stored. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Inspection service: means :

    (1) The Service established and conducted under the regulations in this part for the determination and certification or other identification as to the grade, the quality and/or condition of fresh fruits or vegetables and related products including the condition of container. See 7 CFR 51.2

  • Inspector in Charge: means any inspector designated on a plant working shift or in a field office laboratory as the inspector in charge of the inspection work when authorized by the Administrator to act in that capacity. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. Source: OCC
  • Interested party: means any person who has a financial interest in the commodity involved. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Interrogatories: Written questions asked by one party of an opposing party, who must answer them in writing under oath; a discovery device in a lawsuit.
  • Joint committee: Committees including membership from both houses of teh legislature. Joint committees are usually established with narrow jurisdictions and normally lack authority to report legislation.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
  • Licensed sampler: means any person who is authorized by the Secretary to draw samples of processed products for inspection service, to inspect for identification and condition of containers in a lot, and may, when authorized by the Administrator, perform related services under the act and the regulations in this part. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Life estate: A property interest limited in duration to the life of the individual holding the interest (life tenant).
  • Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
  • Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
  • Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
  • National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. Source: OCC
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Oral argument: An opportunity for lawyers to summarize their position before the court and also to answer the judges' questions.
  • Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
  • Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
  • Person: means any individual, partnership, association, business trust, corporation, any organized group of persons (whether incorporated or not), the United States (including, but not limited to, any corporate agencies thereof), any State, county, or municipal government, any common carrier, and any authorized agent of any of the foregoing. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Plant: means the premises, buildings, structure, and equipment (including, but not being limited to machines, utensils, vehicles, and fixtures located in or about the premises) used or employed in the preparation, processing, handling, transporting and storage of fruits and vegetables, or the processed products thereof. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
  • Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
  • practical utility: means that actual uses can be demonstrated. See 5 CFR 1320.3
  • Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
  • Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
  • Processed product: means any fruit, vegetable, or other food product covered under the regulations in this part which has been preserved by any recognized commercial process, including, but not limited to canning, freezing, dehydrating, drying, the addition of chemical substances, or by fermentation. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
  • Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
  • Quality: means the combination of the inherent properties or attributes of a product which determines its relative degree of excellence. See 7 CFR 51.2
  • Quality: means the inherent properties of any processed product which determine the relative degree of excellence of such product, and includes the effects of preparation and processing, and may or may not include the effects of packing media, or added ingredients. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
  • Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
  • Revolving credit: A credit agreement (typically a credit card) that allows a customer to borrow against a preapproved credit line when purchasing goods and services. The borrower is only billed for the amount that is actually borrowed plus any interest due. (Also called a charge account or open-end credit.) Source: OCC
  • Sample: means any number of sample units to be used for inspection. See 7 CFR 51.2
  • Sample: means any number of sample units to be used for inspection. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Sample unit: means a container and/or its entire contents, a portion of the contents of one or more containers or other unit of commodity, or a composite mixture of a product used for inspection. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Sampling: means the act of selecting samples of processed products for the purpose of inspection under the regulations in this part. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Secretary: means the Secretary of the Department or any other officer or employee of the Department authorized to exercise the powers and to perform the duties of the Secretary in respect to the matters covered by the regulations in this part. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
  • shipping case: means a unit consisting of a given number of primary containers of the same size, the number and arrangement per unit conforming to customary trade practice. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Shipping container: means an individual container designed for shipping a number of packages or cans ordinarily packed in a container for shipping or designed for packing unpackaged processed products for shipping. See 7 CFR 52.2
  • Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
  • Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
  • ten or more persons: refers to the persons to whom a collection of information is addressed by the agency within any 12-month period, and to any independent entities to which the initial addressee may reasonably be expected to transmit the collection of information during that period, including independent State, territorial, tribal or local entities and separately incorporated subsidiaries or affiliates. See 5 CFR 1320.3
  • Testify: Answer questions in court.
  • Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
  • Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
  • Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
  • Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
  • Variable Rate: Having a "variable" rate means that the APR changes from time to time based on fluctuations in an external rate, normally the Prime Rate. This external rate is known as the "index." If the index changes, the variable rate normally changes. Also see Fixed Rate.
  • you: as used in this part 4290 means a RBIC unless otherwise noted. See 7 CFR 4290.40