Updated July 21, 2020
Farmer Mac and Its Board Members
Overview
mortgage loans. In that line of business, Farmer Mac also
The Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (Farmer
guarantees securities held by third parties that are backed
Mac) is a secondary market for agricultural mortgages. It
by eligible loans and promises to buy specific agricultural
purchases loans from originating lenders and provides other
mortgages under future adverse conditions by selling “long-
risk management tools to facilitate the agricultural lending
term standby purchase commitments” to financial
market. It was created by Congress as a privately funded
institutions. The purchase commitments guarantee loans
government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) similar to the
against default risk, while the originating lender retains
housing GSEs such as Fannie Mae.
interest rate risk and loan servicing responsibilities.
Farmer Mac is governed by a 15-member board of
In the guarantee line, Farmer Mac purchases the portion of
directors, five of whom are nominated by the President and
loans that are guaranteed by USDA, thereby accepting the
confirmed by the Senate. In December 2019, the Senate
interest rate risk but carrying no default risk. The rural
confirmed a new board member, LaJuana Wilcher, who was
utilities business line involves mostly loans to rural electric
named chairperson of the board. In January 2020, President
cooperatives. The institutional credit portion supports the
Trump nominated Charles Stones for another board position
general obligations of eligible financial institutions, defined
that remains pending.
as having borrowers and portfolios that are eligible for
other Farmer Mac business.
Congressional oversight is provided by the House and
Senate Agriculture Committees, which have primary
At the end of 2019, Farmer Mac’s total business volume
jurisdiction for the Farmer Mac statutes.
(similar to assets) was $21 billion, up 7% over 2018. The
largest share of Farmer Mac’s business (nearly half) is in
Farmer Mac
institutional credit, followed by farm and ranch, USDA
Farmer Mac was established in the Agricultural Credit Act
guarantees, and rural utilities. Its core earnings (that
of 1987 (P.L. 100-233, Title VII) as a secondary market for
exclude the effects of valuation fluctuations and infrequent
agricultural loans. It purchases and pools qualified loans
or unusual transactions) was $94 million in 2019, up 12%
and may sell them to investors as securities or hold them in
over 2018.
its own portfolio. It provides risk management tools to
originating lenders that let them make more loans to
Board Members
agricultural borrowers and satisfy regulatory requirements.
Congress prescribes a 15-member board of directors for
Farmer Mac (12 U.S.C. §2279aa-2). Five are presidentially
Statutorily, Farmer Mac is part of the Farm Credit System
appointed and Senate confirmed, five are elected by
(FCS) and is codified in the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12
stockholders to represent banks and insurance companies,
U.S.C. §2279aa; see CRS Report RS21278, Farm Credit
and five are elected by other stockholders to represent the
System). Financially and corporately, however, Farmer Mac
FCS.
is a separate entity from the FCS. Each has no liability for
any of the others’ debt. Administratively, Farmer Mac and
Five Presidentially Appointed and Senate
the FCS have the same federal regulator—the Farm Credit
Confirmed
Administration (see CRS In Focus IF10767, Farm Credit
Table 1. Presidentially Appointed Members of the
Administration and Its Board Members).
Farmer Mac Board of Directors
Farmer Mac is an investor-owned corporation, not a
Name
Description
member-owned cooperative like the FCS. Two classes of
voting stock exist for (1) banks and insurance companies
LaJuana Wilcher
Chairperson. Confirmed in 2019.
and (2) the FCS. Any investor may own nonvoting stock.
Lowell Junkins
Vice-chairman. Confirmed in 1996.
As an independent entity, Farmer Mac is not supported by
congressional appropriations and is not part of the U.S.
Sara Faivre
Confirmed in 2010.
Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Myles Watts
Confirmed in 2010.
Farmer Mac operates in four primary lines of business:
Bruce Sherrick
Confirmed in 2012.
farm and ranch, USDA guarantees, rural utilities, and
Source: CRS, using data at Farmermac.com and Congress.gov
institutional credit.
(accessed July 7, 2020).
In the farm and ranch business line, most activity is from
Note: Ordered by officers and seniority.
Farmer Mac purchasing and retaining eligible agricultural
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Farmer Mac and Its Board Members
For the five presidentially appointed and Senate-confirmed
and Sherrick) and two with the Democratic Party (Junkins
board members (Table 1), the statute does not specify a
and Faivre).
term length but says that such board members serve at the
pleasure of the President. The President names one of the
A nominee, Charles Stones, is pending Senate action to
appointees to be chairperson of the board (12 U.S.C.
replace Sherrick. President Trump nominated Stones in
§2279aa-2 (a).
January 2020 (PN1420).
The presidential appointees are to represent the general
Figure 1 is a timeline showing the service of the
public and may not have been officers or directors of
presidentially appointed board members of Farmer Mac
financial institutions. Not more than three may be of the
since its inception.
same political party, and at least two shall be farmers or
ranchers (12 U.S.C. §2279aa-2 (a)(2)(C)(i)-(iv)).
10 Elected Representing Banks and Farm Credit
System
The current slate of presidential appointees includes
The other 10 members on the Farmer Mac board that
LaJuana Wilcher (confirmed in 2019), whom President
represent commercial banks and the FCS are elected to one-
Trump designated as chairperson of the board. Lowell
year terms by the shareholders of the respective classes of
Junkins, the former chairman, was named vice-chairman
stock (12 U.S.C. §2279aa-2 (a)(5)). They may serve until
and has served since his appointment in 1996. Other
their successors take office and may be reelected. Statute
presidentially appointed board members include Sara Faivre
expresses no other qualifications.
(confirmed in 2010), Myles Watts (confirmed in 2010), and
Bruce Sherrick (confirmed in 2012).
The Code of Federal Regulations (12 C.F.R. 651)
prescribes a “Code of Business Conduct and Ethics” for
For the statutory requirement that not more than three of the
Farmer Mac. This code states that the board may
presidential appointees be of the same political party, three
recommend to the President that a presidential appointee on
are affiliated with the Republican Party (Wilcher, Watts,
the Farmer Mac board be removed if the board determines
that the member has violated the code.
Figure 1. Presidentially Appointed Members of the Farmer Mac Board of Directors, 1988-2020
Source: CRS, compiled using data from Senate Agriculture Committee, “Nominations,” and Congress.gov (accessed July 7, 2020).
IF11595
Jim Monke, Specialist in Agricultural Policy
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Farmer Mac and Its Board Members
Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to
congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress.
Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has
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https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF11595 · VERSION 2 · UPDATED