S.Amdt. 2278Senate113th Congress (2013-2015)

S.Amdt. 2278

What it does: Adds SEC. 1082. UNITED STATES EXPORTS TO AFRICA at the end of subtitle H of title X
Submitted November 19, 2013

What it changes

1 change to S. 1197 · shown in the bill's text

Adds a section
  1. Adds SEC. 1082. UNITED STATES EXPORTS TO AFRICA at the end of subtitle H of title X

    Adds a section

    In S. 1197 · Placed on Calendar Senate

    (e) Date for Submittal of Comptroller General of the United States Report.--Subsection (d) of such section is amended by striking "December 30, 2013" and inserting "December 31, 2014".

    Inserted: SEC. 1082. UNITED STATES EXPORTS TO AFRICA.

    Inserted: (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to create jobs in the United States by increasing United States exports to Africa by 200 percent in real dollar value within 10 years.

    Inserted: (b) Definitions.--In this section:

    Inserted: (1) Africa.--The term "Africa" refers to the entire continent of Africa and its 54 countries, including the Republic of South Sudan.

    Inserted: (2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term "appropriate congressional committees" means--

    Inserted: (A) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Committee on Finance of the Senate; and

    Inserted: (B) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on Financial Services, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives.

    Inserted: (3) Trade promotion coordinating committee.--The term "Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee" means the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee established by Executive Order 12870 (58 Fed. Reg. 51753).

    Inserted: (4) United states and foreign commercial service.--The term "United States and Foreign Commercial Service" means the United States and Foreign Commercial Service established by section 2301 of the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C. 4721).

    Inserted: (c) Coordinated Agency Efforts.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall designate an existing senior United States Government official with existing interagency authority for export policy for Africa to coordinate among various United States Government agencies existing export strategies with the goal of significantly increasing United States exports to Africa in real dollar value. Such coordination shall occur for not less than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

    Inserted: (d) Trade Mission to Africa.--It is the sense of Congress that, not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce and other high-level officials of the United States Government with responsibility for export promotion, financing, and development should conduct a joint trade mission to Africa.

    Inserted: (e) Personnel.--

    Show 27 more inserted paragraphs

    Inserted: (1) United states and foreign commercial service.--

    Inserted: (A) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce shall ensure that not less than 10 total United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers are assigned to Africa for each of the first 5 fiscal years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.

    Inserted: (B) Assignment.--The Secretary shall, in consultation with the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee, the Under Secretary for International Trade of the Department of Commerce, and the person designated pursuant to subsection (c), assign the United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers described in subparagraph (A) to United States embassies in Africa after conducting a timely resource allocation analysis that represents a forward-looking assessment of future United States trade opportunities in Africa.

    Inserted: (C) Coordination.--As soon as practicable after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall ensure that the Department of Commerce coordinates with the United States Executive Director at the World Bank and the African Development Bank on United States export strategy related to Africa.

    Inserted: (2) Overseas private investment corporation.--

    Inserted: (A) Staffing.--Of the net offsetting collections collected by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation used for administrative expenses, the Corporation shall use sufficient funds to ensure that adequate staff, not to increase by more than two new staff, are available to promote stable and sustainable economic growth and development in Africa, to strengthen and expand the private sector in Africa, and to facilitate the general economic development of Africa, with a particular focus on helping United States businesses expand into African markets.

    Inserted: (B) Report.--The Corporation shall report to the appropriate congressional committees on whether recent technology upgrades have resulted in more effective and efficient processing and tracking of applications for financing received by the Corporation.

    Inserted: (3) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as permitting the reduction of Department of Commerce, Department of State, Export Import Bank, or Overseas Private Investment Corporation personnel or the alteration of planned personnel increases in other regions, except where a personnel decrease was previously anticipated or where decreased export opportunities justify personnel reductions.

    Inserted: (f) Training.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall develop and implement a plan--

    Inserted: (1) to standardize the training received by United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers, economic officers of the Department of State, and economic officers of the United States Agency for International Development with respect to the programs and procedures of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, the Small Business Administration, and the United States Trade and Development Agency; and

    Inserted: (2) to ensure that--

    Inserted: (A) all United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers that are stationed overseas receive the training described in paragraph (1); and

    Inserted: (B) in the case of a country to which no United States and Foreign Commercial Service officer is assigned, any economic officer of the Department of State stationed in that country shall receive that training.

    Inserted: (g) Small Business Administration.--Section 22(b) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649(b)) is amended--

    Inserted: (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting "the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee," after "Director of the United States Trade and Development Agency,"; and

    Inserted: (2) in paragraph (3), by inserting "regional offices of the Export-Import Bank," after "Retired Executives,".

    Inserted: (h) Non-oecd Lending and Reporting.--

    Inserted: (1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that foreign export credit agencies are providing non-OECD arrangement compliant financing in Africa, which distorts trade and threatens United States jobs.

    Inserted: (2) Report.--

    Inserted: (A) In general.--Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for five years, the senior coordinator named in subsection (c) shall submit to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Financial Services, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report on United States Government export financing related to United States exports to Africa.

    Inserted: (B) Elements.--The report required under subparagraph (A) shall include the following elements:

    Inserted: (i) A summary of progress made to significantly increase United States exports to Africa in real dollars.

    Inserted: (ii) An explanation of challenges hindering further United States exports to Africa, including plans to overcome such challenges.

    Inserted: (iii) An assessment of challenges that prevented United States Government export financing for viable United States export business to Africa for which commercial lending was not available.

    Inserted: (iv) A summary of all Export Import Bank loans made and rejected that were considered to counter non-OECD arrangement compliant financing offered by other countries.

    Inserted: (v) A description of trade distorting non-OECD arrangement compliant financing loans made by other countries during that fiscal year to firms that competed against United States firms.

    Inserted: (C) Non-disclosure.--The report required under subparagraph (A) shall not disclose any information that is confidential or business proprietary, or that would violate section 1905 of title 18, United States Code (commonly referred to as the "Trade Secrets Act").

    Original wording

    At the end of subtitle H of title X, add the following:

Read automatically from the Congressional Record. Check the original before relying on it.

As printed

SA 2278. Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Boozman, Mr. Coons, Mr. Kirk, Mr. Graham, Mrs. Shaheen, and Mr. Brown) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 1197, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2014 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the end of subtitle H of title X, add the following:

SEC. 1082. UNITED STATES EXPORTS TO AFRICA.

(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to create jobs in the United States by increasing United States exports to Africa by 200 percent in real dollar value within 10 years.

(b) Definitions.--In this section:

(1) Africa.--The term “Africa” refers to the entire continent of Africa and its 54 countries, including the Republic of South Sudan.

(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term “appropriate congressional committees” means--

(A) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Committee on Finance of the Senate; and

(B) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on Financial Services, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives.

(3) Trade promotion coordinating committee.--The term “Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee” means the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee established by Executive Order 12870 (58 Fed. Reg. 51753).

(4) United states and foreign commercial service.--The term “United States and Foreign Commercial Service” means the United States and Foreign Commercial Service established by section 2301 of the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C. 4721).

(c) Coordinated Agency Efforts.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall designate an existing senior United States Government official with existing interagency authority for export policy for Africa to coordinate among various United States Government agencies existing export strategies with the goal of significantly increasing United States exports to Africa in real dollar value. Such coordination shall occur for not less than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

(d) Trade Mission to Africa.--It is the sense of Congress that, not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce and other high-level officials of the United States Government with responsibility for export promotion, financing, and development should conduct a joint trade mission to Africa.

(e) Personnel.--

(1) United states and foreign commercial service.--

(A) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce shall ensure that not less than 10 total United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers are assigned to Africa for each of the first 5 fiscal years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.

(B) Assignment.--The Secretary shall, in consultation with the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee, the Under Secretary for International Trade of the Department of Commerce, and the person designated pursuant to subsection (c), assign the United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers described in subparagraph (A) to United States embassies in Africa after conducting a timely resource allocation analysis that represents a forward-looking assessment of future United States trade opportunities in Africa.

(C) Coordination.--As soon as practicable after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall ensure that the Department of Commerce coordinates with the United States Executive Director at the World Bank and the African Development Bank on United States export strategy related to Africa.

(2) Overseas private investment corporation.--

(A) Staffing.--Of the net offsetting collections collected by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation used for administrative expenses, the Corporation shall use sufficient funds to ensure that adequate staff, not to increase by more than two new staff, are available to promote stable and sustainable economic growth and development in Africa, to strengthen and expand the private sector in Africa, and to facilitate the general economic development of Africa, with a particular focus on helping United States businesses expand into African markets.

(B) Report.--The Corporation shall report to the appropriate congressional committees on whether recent technology upgrades have resulted in more effective and efficient processing and tracking of applications for financing received by the Corporation.

(3) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as permitting the reduction of Department of Commerce, Department of State, Export Import Bank, or Overseas Private Investment Corporation personnel or the alteration of planned personnel increases in other regions, except where a personnel decrease was previously anticipated or where decreased export opportunities justify personnel reductions.

(f) Training.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall develop and implement a plan--

(1) to standardize the training received by United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers, economic officers of the Department of State, and economic officers of the United States Agency for International Development with respect to the programs and procedures of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, the Small Business Administration, and the United States Trade and Development Agency; and

(2) to ensure that--

(A) all United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers that are stationed overseas receive the training described in paragraph (1); and

(B) in the case of a country to which no United States and Foreign Commercial Service officer is assigned, any economic officer of the Department of State stationed in that country shall receive that training.

(g) Small Business Administration.--Section 22(b) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649(b)) is amended--

(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting “the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee,” after “Director of the United States Trade and Development Agency,”; and

(2) in paragraph (3), by inserting “regional offices of the Export-Import Bank,” after “Retired Executives,”.

(h) Non-oecd Lending and Reporting.--

(1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that foreign export credit agencies are providing non-OECD arrangement compliant financing in Africa, which distorts trade and threatens United States jobs.

(2) Report.--

(A) In general.--Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for five years, the senior coordinator named in subsection (c) shall submit to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Financial Services, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report on United States Government export financing related to United States exports to Africa.

(B) Elements.--The report required under subparagraph (A) shall include the following elements:

(i) A summary of progress made to significantly increase United States exports to Africa in real dollars.

(ii) An explanation of challenges hindering further United States exports to Africa, including plans to overcome such challenges.

(iii) An assessment of challenges that prevented United States Government export financing for viable United States export business to Africa for which commercial lending was not available.

(iv) A summary of all Export Import Bank loans made and rejected that were considered to counter non-OECD arrangement compliant financing offered by other countries.

(v) A description of trade distorting non-OECD arrangement compliant financing loans made by other countries during that fiscal year to firms that competed against United States firms.

(C) Non-disclosure.--The report required under subparagraph (A) shall not disclose any information that is confidential or business proprietary, or that would violate section 1905 of title 18, United States Code (commonly referred to as the “Trade Secrets Act”).

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Senate amendment submitted

November 19, 2013