The authority as lessor is authorized to lease any project or group of projects to the Department of Agriculture as lessee and the Commissioner of Agriculture is authorized on behalf of the department to execute and enter upon such leases for the use of a project or group of projects by the department and the general public on the following terms and conditions:

(1) The leases shall be for a term not in excess of 50 years;

(2) The rental to be paid for the use of the project or projects shall be fixed by the authority and shall be calculated so as to enable the authority:

(A) To pay the principal of and interest on the bonds, the proceeds of which have been or will be spent on the cost of the project or projects thus leased, including any premium;

(B) To comply with any sinking fund requirement contained in the trust indenture securing such bonds;

(C) To pay the cost of maintaining, repairing, and operating such project or projects;

(D) To perform fully all of the provisions of the trust indenture securing the bonds to the payment of which such rental is pledged;

(E) To pay the pro rata share of the reasonable and necessary administrative and operating expenses of the authority, including any sum or sums that may be owed to the department as a result of expenditures made by the department under this article;

(F) To accumulate any excess income which may be required by the bond purchasers or dictated by the requirements of achieving ready marketability and low interest rates of the bonds; and

(G) To pay any expenses incurred in connection with the bond issue or project or group of projects, such as trustees' fees, counsel fees, fiscal fees, and the like.

(3) The rental shall be payable at such intervals as may be agreed upon and set forth in such lease; any lease may provide for the commencement of rental payments to the authority prior to the completion of the undertaking of the authority with respect to any project or projects; and it may also provide for payment of rental during such times as the leased project or group of projects is partially or wholly untenantable;

(4) The lease may obligate the Department of Agriculture, at its own expense, to maintain and to keep in good repair and to completely reconstruct, if necessary, the leased projects, regardless of the cause of the necessity for such maintenance, repair, or reconstruction. If such provision is included in any lease, then the maintenance, repair, upkeep, and reconstruction, if necessary, shall be performed by the department, which is authorized to expend any sums legally available to it in carrying out such obligation; (5) The lease may obligate the Department of Agriculture to indemnify and save harmless the authority from any and all injury and damage to persons or property occurring on or by reason of the leased premises and improvements thereon and to undertake at state expense the defense of any actions brought against the authority by reason of injury or damages to persons or property occurring on or by reason of the leased premises.