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22 U.S.C. § 286hhPolicy based lending for debt reduction

submitted 38 years ago by Pub. L. 100-461 to r/title-22-FOREIGN-RELATIONS-AND-INTERCOURSE · 778 words · no verdicts yet

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The Treasury Secretary must push the World Bank to support voluntary, market-based programs that reduce poor countries' debt and encourage sustainable growth. These programs must be optional, tailored to each country, tied to economic reforms, and must not simply pay banks back for their losses. The Secretary must also report to Congress on the Bank's progress reducing debt for the most heavily indebted countries.

(a) Criteria The Secretary of the Treasury must instruct the U.S. Executive Director at the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development ("the Bank") to start discussions with other Bank directors. The goal is to support voluntary, market-based programs that reduce sovereign debt and promote sustainable development. If put in place, these programs must: (1) not force any government or organization to take part; (2) reduce debt by an amount tailored to each country's situation; (3) tie help to countries carrying out — and keeping — economic reforms consistent with sustainable development; (4) encourage countries to make changes gradually over time; (5) use debt-reduction methods that do not simply compensate commercial banks for their losses, but instead spark new lending; (6) involve the Bank in debt-reduction lending only when it would not hurt the Bank's own credit rating; (7) not require extra public funding beyond any capital increase for the Bank or replenishment for the International Development Association that member countries already agreed to; and (8) treat debt reduction as a means, not an end — a way to restore growth, investment, and private lending for sustainable development. (b) Policy based lending for debt reduction and sustainable growth The Secretary must instruct the U.S. Executive Director to propose that the Bank make policy-based loans to help reduce the debt-service burden of any country taking part in the voluntary program described in subsection (c). (c) Voluntary market-based program for debt reduction and sustainable growth The Secretary must instruct the U.S. Executive Director to propose that a country counts as "participating" under subsection (b) if its creditors agree to significantly cut the country's debt service — either by forgiving a share of interest owed on sovereign debt, or by some other method. (d) Reports By March 1, 1989, March 1, 1991, and March 1, 1993, the Secretary must send Congress three reports. Each report must: (1) describe the Bank's long-term strategy for reducing debt of countries the Bank designated "Highly Indebted Countries" in its 1987–1988 World Debt Tables, and summarize its strategy for other seriously indebted countries; (2) explain what steps the Bank has taken to reduce debt for those "Highly Indebted Countries"; (3) describe how far the Bank has carried out the measures in subsections (b) and (c); and (4) describe how well each country has managed and reduced its debt and achieved sustainable growth, measured by things like the ratio of debt service to exports, debt to GNP, net resource flows, and income per person. (e) Review by House Banking Committee When the House Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs gets each report under subsection (d), it must consult the Secretary of the Treasury and forward the report to the House Appropriations Committee. It must attach its own assessment of how funding the U.S. share of Bank capital stock, due the next fiscal year, would affect the international debt situation.
the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain
(a) Criteria

The Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United States Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to initiate discussions with other directors of such bank and to advocate and support the facilitation of voluntary market-based programs for the reduction of sovereign debt and the promotion of sustainable economic development, which, if implemented, would—

(1)

not require any organization or government to participate in such a program;

(2)

result in debt reduction for each participating country tailored to the particular situation of each country;

(3)

provide assistance to participating countries conditioned on the implementation of economic reforms, and the preservation of economic reforms previously implemented, by the country that are consistent with the principles of sustainable development;

(4)

encourage participating countries to make economic adjustments steadily and over a period of time in order to achieve policy reform;

(5)

use debt reduction techniques that would not compensate commercial banks for the reduction in the value of such debt, but would serve as a catalyst for new lending;

(6)

involve such bank in lending for purposes of debt reduction and conversion only where such involvement would not lower the credit-worthiness of such bank;

(7)

not require public sector funding beyond that provided through any capital increase for such bank, and any replenishment for the International Development Association, which is agreed to by the member countries of such institutions; and

(8)

accomplish debt reduction, not as an end, but as a means to greater growth and investment in, and the restoration of voluntary private lending to, participating countries for environmentally and economically sustainable development.

(b) Policy based lending for debt reduction and sustainable growth

The Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United States Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to initiate discussions with other directors of such bank and to propose that policy based loans be made by such bank for, among other reasons, facilitating a reduction in the debt service burden of any country which is participating in a voluntary market-based program for debt reduction described in subsection (c).

(c) Voluntary market-based program for debt reduction and sustainable growth

In connection with the discussions initiated pursuant to subsection (b), the Secretary shall instruct the United States Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to propose that a country be considered to be participating in a voluntary market-based program of debt reduction for purposes of subsection (b) if the creditors of such country agree to significantly reduce the debt service of such country through forgiveness of a percentage of the interest owed by such country on any sovereign debt or through any other means.

(d) Reports

Not later than March 1, 1989, March 1, 1991, and March 1, 1993, respectively, the Secretary of the Treasury shall submit to the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate 3 reports each of which—

(1)

describes the long term strategy and lending programs of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development for reducing and managing the debt burden of the countries designated as “Highly Indebted Countries” in the 1987–1988 World Debt Tables published by such bank, and summarize the long term strategy and lending programs of such bank for other seriously indebted countries;

(2)

contains an explanation of the measures taken by such bank to facilitate the reduction of the debt burden of the countries designated as “Highly Indebted Countries” in the 1987–1988 World Debt tables 1 published by such bank;

(3)

describes the extent (if any) to which such bank has implemented the measures described in subsections (b) and (c); and

(4)

describes the success each of such countries has had in managing and reducing their debt burdens and achieving sustainable and equitable economic growth as measured by criteria including the ratio of debt service to exports, the ratio of debt to gross national product, net resource flows, and per capita income.

(e) Review by House Banking Committee

On receipt of each report required to be submitted pursuant to subsection (d), and after consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives shall forward such report to the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives with an assessment by the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs describing the effect on the international debt situation of funding the subscription of the United States to the shares of capital stock of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development due for payment by the United States in the then next fiscal year.

Source credit: (Pub. L. 100–461, title V, § 555, Oct. 1, 1988, 102 Stat. 2268–36; Pub. L. 111–203, title IX, § 939(f), July 21, 2010, 124 Stat. 1886.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit
  • 1988Enacted · Pub. L. 100-461 · 102 Stat. 2268
  • 2010Amended · Pub. L. 111-203 · 124 Stat. 1886

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 100-461 on 1988-10-01.

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