(1) The district supervisors shall apply the following criteria in ranking applications for a conservation practice loan that is eligible for funding under 76-15-544:
(a) the extent and desirability of the conservation need and resource benefit as determined in the district's annual and long-range plans;
(b) the feasibility and practicality of the project;
(c) the number of related resources that will benefit, including but not limited to water quality, wildlife habitat, and recreation;
(d) the extent and desirability of associated public benefits in addition to any private benefits the project or activity may provide; and
(e) any other factor that, in the district supervisors' judgment, is important to the evaluation of the conservation practice in light of the purposes, policies, and objectives of this chapter.
(2) Among applications for a loan in which the proposed conservation practices are substantially equal in ranking under subsection (1), a district shall give preference to:
(a) applicants who have not previously received a conservation practice loan; and
(b) applications for a group or cooperative conservation practice.