(1) "Rural development authority", "development authority", or "authority" means any of the public corporations created pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(2) "County" means any county in this state;

(3) "State public body" means any city, town, county, municipal corporation, commission, district, authority, or other political subdivision of this state;

(4) "Governing body" means the county court of any county and, in the case of other state public bodies, the council, commission, board, city council, or other body having charge of the management of the affairs of the state public body;

(5) "Area of operation" means all areas within the county, except those areas lying within the corporate limits of cities and towns which have a population of more than five thousand five hundred (5,500) or such part of the area as may be designated as an area of operation pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(6) "Federal government" means the United States of America, or any agency or instrumentality, corporate or otherwise, of the United States of America;

(7) "Rural development project", "development project", or "project" means, but is not limited to, any work or undertaking:

(A) To develop recreational facilities;

(B) To acquire the types of land enumerated for any of the following purposes:

(i) Submarginal or low-yielding land to convert it to conservation, grazing, forestry, fish and wildlife propagation, or recreation or desirable long-range economic uses;

(ii) Land suitable for cultivation that, because of diverse ownership or location, may be made available by the owners of it and consolidated with other similar tracts in the establishment of adequate farming units or consolidated with land devoted to uses other than crop production;

(iii) Land suitable for cultivation which becomes available in large blocks upon the death or retirement of the operator or which, because of technological changes or economic conditions, may be made available by the owners of it for diverse ownership and operations as adequate farming units;

(iv) Land necessary or desirable for soil and water conservation, flood prevention, watershed protection, drainage, water storage and use, anti-pollution or sanitation uses and other public services or facilities, or necessary rights-of-way and access roads; or

(C) For installation, construction, and improvements to utility facilities, roads, parks, conservation practices and measures, flood control and drainage structures and facilities, dams, wells, and reservoirs, pipelines, waterworks, and other devices for the development, storage, and utilization of water for agricultural, domestic, industrial, and community purposes, the development or improvement of sanitation measures, including sewage and sewage disposal facilities and anti-pollution measures, and the construction, operation, maintenance, and repair of any housing project, or part of it;

(8) "Bonds" means any bonds, notes, interim certificates, debentures, or other evidences of indebtedness issued by a rural development authority pursuant to this chapter.