Posted:
September 26, 2014
The President September 19 signed a continuing resolution to fund the federal government through December 11 and extend the charter of the U.S. Export-Import Bank until June 30, 2015, after the legislation was approved by the House of Representatives and Senate.
The continuing resolution funds government programs at approximately present levels through the expiration date. Congress will need to approve a new funding mechanism for the remaining months of fiscal year 2015 prior to the expiration of the continuing resolution to avoid shutdown of the federal government.
"While it is a positive development that the Congress agreed on a plan to keep the government functioning into the new fiscal year, they managed to arrive at only a temporary fix," said AMO Director of Political Affairs John DeCrosta. "As a result, once the mid-term elections are over, appropriators will immediately have to turn their attention back to determining how to fund government operations for the remainder of fiscal year 2015. Who will control the House and the Senate will dictate what sort of appropriations bill the Congress would be willing to adopt in November or December, and what impact, if any, there would be on maritime programs.
"A matter addressed in the continuing resolution that is of great concern is the temporary extension of the Export-Import Bank charter," DeCrosta said. "By pushing the expiration of the bank's operating authority out to June of next year, as opposed to providing it with a full five-year re-chartering, critics of the Ex-Im Bank have given themselves another window in which to work to limit that institution's authorities, if not actually abolish it. Working to secure re-chartering of the Ex-Im Bank will continue to be one of our priorities."
Absent an extension, or a longer-term reauthorization, the charter of the Export-Import Bank would have expired at the end of this month with the close of the fiscal year. Under U.S. cargo preference laws, U.S.-flagged vessels transport manufactured U.S. goods purchased with financing assistance from the Export-Import Bank.
Congressional supporters vowed to continue working toward a multi-year reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank during the extension period. The Export-Import Bank helps American businesses sell their goods and services overseas by guaranteeing that they receive compensation for the transaction. Without the Export-Import Bank, 205,000 or more American jobs would be at risk. The Ex-Im Bank supported an estimated $37.4 billion in U.S. export sales in 2013, and returned more than $1 billion to U.S. taxpayers.
Continuing resolution funds federal government through December 11, extends Export-Import Bank charter by nine months
The President September 19 signed a continuing resolution to fund the federal government through December 11 and extend the charter of the U.S. Export-Import Bank until June 30, 2015, after the legislation was approved by the House of Representatives and Senate.
The continuing resolution funds government programs at approximately present levels through the expiration date. Congress will need to approve a new funding mechanism for the remaining months of fiscal year 2015 prior to the expiration of the continuing resolution to avoid shutdown of the federal government.
"While it is a positive development that the Congress agreed on a plan to keep the government functioning into the new fiscal year, they managed to arrive at only a temporary fix," said AMO Director of Political Affairs John DeCrosta. "As a result, once the mid-term elections are over, appropriators will immediately have to turn their attention back to determining how to fund government operations for the remainder of fiscal year 2015. Who will control the House and the Senate will dictate what sort of appropriations bill the Congress would be willing to adopt in November or December, and what impact, if any, there would be on maritime programs.
"A matter addressed in the continuing resolution that is of great concern is the temporary extension of the Export-Import Bank charter," DeCrosta said. "By pushing the expiration of the bank's operating authority out to June of next year, as opposed to providing it with a full five-year re-chartering, critics of the Ex-Im Bank have given themselves another window in which to work to limit that institution's authorities, if not actually abolish it. Working to secure re-chartering of the Ex-Im Bank will continue to be one of our priorities."
Absent an extension, or a longer-term reauthorization, the charter of the Export-Import Bank would have expired at the end of this month with the close of the fiscal year. Under U.S. cargo preference laws, U.S.-flagged vessels transport manufactured U.S. goods purchased with financing assistance from the Export-Import Bank.
Congressional supporters vowed to continue working toward a multi-year reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank during the extension period. The Export-Import Bank helps American businesses sell their goods and services overseas by guaranteeing that they receive compensation for the transaction. Without the Export-Import Bank, 205,000 or more American jobs would be at risk. The Ex-Im Bank supported an estimated $37.4 billion in U.S. export sales in 2013, and returned more than $1 billion to U.S. taxpayers.