Josh Cohen - Congress yet to Reauthorize U.S. Export-Import Bank for Funding

Congress still has not yet committed to authorizing the United States Export-Import Bank for funding, an unprecedented move in the bank’s 80-year history. The bank’s main function is to provide financing for foreign companies in order to allow them to purchase U.S. goods and make deals with U.S. companies. Every five years, Congress has the option to reauthorize the bank for funding. Generally, the decision to fund is met with minimal opposition, but this year, politicians are arguing that the funding through U.S. taxes is simply a way of stealing taxpayer money. Many Republicans are claiming that the fund is nothing more than a form of corporate welfare. Politicians favoring a halt in funding have been quick to point out questionable tactics by the Ex-Im Bank, particularly that the bank tends to play favorites when making loans, helping out the larger corporations as opposed to the smaller ones. The debate presents yet another distinct divide between the two national parties, as most Democrats are leaning in favor of reauthorization.

This issue particularly hits home, as Florida is the state with the most to lose should funding not continue. The bank funding creates 70,000 jobs for Floridians, providing a very important segment of the economy. Florida unemployment, which is on par with the country as a whole at about 6%, has been steadily decreasing since the recession. A blow like this has the ability to hurt Floridians even further. Florida is not the only state that is taking hits due to the stalling in the reauthorization of funding. FirmGreen is a California company that has been inventing and commercializing new energy technologies and boosting the California economy for some time now. Steve Wilburn, the CEO of FirmGreen, testified at a House hearing in June that he lost a $57 million deal to a Korean competitor. The potential client claimed that the financing terms being offered were not up to par with the offers from the Korean Ex-Im bank, although the technologies offered by both were considered on par with one another. Overall, this issue is just another that illustrates the inefficiency of Congress and its overall inability to complete tasks due to bipartisanship and an unwillingness to cooperate among politicians.