Export-Import Bank Reauthorization passes House

Statement

Below is a statement from Rep. Bill Keating on the passage of H.R. 597, the Reauthorization of the Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank of the United States.

"The Export-Import Bank -- our nation's export credit agency -- was allowed to lapse in June of this year. Since then, I have repeatedly urged House Republican Leadership to bring its reauthorization to the floor for a simple up or down vote. When Leadership refused to do that, I joined as one of the signatories to the discharge petition needed to circumvent their partisan games and bring the bill to the floor. Its passage today should indicate to the American public that more things could be getting done in Congress if Members were simply provided with the opportunity to vote on them by Leadership.

"Reauthorizing the Ex-Im Bank is necessary to ensure our businesses and workers - in particular our small businesses - can compete in the international marketplace. Small business exporters need certainty and protection to tackle new markets and expand and create jobs. With nearly 60 other export credit agencies around the world trying to win jobs for their own countries, Ex-Im Bank helps level the playing field for American businesses. This directly contributes to decreasing our trade deficit by encouraging exports.

"Further, this agency ensures that U.S. companies do not lose out on a sale because of attractive financing from foreign governments. This includes numerous companies in my district of the South Shore, South Coast, Cape, and Islands.

"For one local cranberry business in my district, the Ex-Im Bank financed over $6 million in 2015 to enable them to sell their cranberries and cranberry products to Europe, Canada, Mexico, South America, and Asia. In total, $90 million in exports from our district and over 500 jobs were supported by the Ex-Im Bank. The Commonwealth as a whole had over $3 billion in exports supported and over 22,000 jobs supported. Nationally, $235 billion in exports were supported by the bank.

"Now, I urge the Senate to take up this legislation so that the Ex-Im Bank is reauthorized and our small businesses are given the support they need to succeed globally."

The Ex-Im Bank is an independent, nonpartisan agency that has helped finance the export of American goods and services for over eight decades. It operates at no cost to the taxpayer and has created or sustained 1.5 million private sector jobs since 2007 alone.

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