To express the sense of the Senate on the allocation of Special Drawing Rights by the International Monetary Fund to help other countries procure COVID-19 vaccines and protect against the economic instability caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

SA 2014. Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Leahy, and Mr. Reed) submitted
an amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 1502 proposed by
Mr. Schumer to the bill S. 1260, to establish a new Directorate for
Technology and Innovation in the National Science Foundation, to
establish a regional technology hub program, to require a strategy and
report on economic security, science, research, innovation,
manufacturing, and job creation, to establish a critical supply chain
resiliency program, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on
the table; as follows:

At the end of subtitle A of title II of division C, add
the following:

SEC. 3219L. SENSE OF SENATE ON ALLOCATION OF SPECIAL DRAWING
RIGHTS BY INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND RELATING
TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC.

It is the sense of the Senate that--
(1) it is in the strategic interests of the United States
to help ensure that COVID-19 vaccines are available to other
countries, particularly poorer countries with limited
resources, not only as a timely live-saving and humanitarian
measure, but also as the best way to protect hard-fought
gains made against the pandemic in the United States;
(2) the people of the United States will never be fully
protected against the COVID-19 pandemic until the pandemic is
also brought under control through vaccination around the
world;
(3) the release of Special Drawing Rights by the
International Monetary Fund, as was done after the 2008
global economic crisis, is a no-cost way to help poorer
countries procure COVID-19 vaccines and protect against the
instability caused by a severe economic downturn;
(4) helping protect against another global economic
meltdown by releasing Special Drawing Rights is also a way to
help protect United States export jobs at home, and why the
move is supported by leaders of United States businesses and
labor organizations; and

[[Page S3453]]

(5) any allocations of Special Drawing Rights approved by
the International Monetary Fund to help with the purchase of
COVID-19 vaccines and stem the worst economic impact of the
pandemic should include ongoing efforts to discourage
countries that are allies of the United States from
exchanging Special Drawing Rights for hard currencies with
rogue countries and follow-up by the International Monetary
Fund to audit how such allocations were spent.
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