(a) The corporation may provide hardship assistance in those cases where the corporation, in its discretion, determines financial hardship exists. In making such determination, the corporation may consider whether the total estimated annual service charge for a household or equivalent dwelling unit in the area served by the project, calculated using the maximum interest rate applicable to the project, exceeds the target service charge. The provisions relating to hardship assistance shall be published annually in the IUP.

(b) Hardship assistance may be provided for an eligible municipality's project or allocable portion thereof, and shall be limited to the amounts published in the IUP. Hardship assistance will not be provided for a segment of a municipality's project if the total cost of all segments of such project exceeds the hardship limit. The corporation may provide a written confirmation that a potential municipality qualifies for hardship assistance because of financial hardship.