[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2969 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2969

 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the Overseas 
Private Investment Corporation to issue loan guarantees for development 
                          projects in Ireland.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 6, 1993

  Mr. Manton introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the Overseas 
Private Investment Corporation to issue loan guarantees for development 
                          projects in Ireland.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. GUARANTEED LENDING PROGRAM FOR IRISH DEVELOPMENT.

    The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended by inserting after 
section 231A (22 U.S.C. 2191a) the following new section:

``SEC. 231B. GUARANTEED LENDING PROGRAM FOR IRISH DEVELOPMENT.

    ``(a) Purposes.--The purposes of this section are--
            ``(1) to create more employment opportunities in the United 
        States and Ireland; and
            ``(2) to increase United States exports to, and the United 
        States trade surplus with, the European Community.
    ``(b) Authority.--During the period beginning on the date of 
enactment of this section, and ending on September 30, 1995, the 
Overseas Private Investment Corporation (hereafter in this section 
referred to as the `Corporation') shall, consistent with the purposes 
of subsection (a), issue guarantees against losses incurred in 
connection with loans to United States firms for the establishment or 
maintenance of low-cost, financially viable distribution facilities in 
Ireland that utilize United States manufactured products and 
components.
    ``(c) Terms and Conditions of Loan Guarantees.--(1) The total 
principal amount of guarantees which may be issued by the Corporation 
under this section shall not exceed $200,000,000. The total amount of 
guarantees authorized under this section shall be made available during 
the period from the date of enactment of this section through September 
30, 1995, except that, in the event that less than $200,000,000 of 
guarantees is issued in such period, the authority to issue the balance 
of such guarantees shall be available in the fiscal year ending on 
September 30, 1995. Each guarantee issued by the Corporation under this 
section shall guarantee 100 percent of the principal and interest 
payable on such loans.
    ``(2) Guarantees, once issued by the Corporation hereunder, shall 
be unconditional and fully and freely transferable.
    ``(3) The standard terms of any loan or increment guaranteed by the 
Corporation under this section shall be 30 years, with semiannual 
payments of interest only over the first 10 years, and with semiannual 
payments of principal and interest, on a level-payment basis, over the 
last 20 years thereof, except that the guaranteed loan or any 
increments issued in a single transaction may include obligations 
having different maturities, interest rates, and payment terms if the 
aggregate scheduled debt service for all obligations issued in a single 
transaction equals the debt service for a single loan or increment of 
like amount having the standard terms described in this sentence. For 
purposes of determining the maximum principal amount of any loan to be 
guaranteed under this section, the principal amount of each such loan 
shall be--
            ``(A) in the case of any loan issued on a discount basis, 
        the original issue price (excluding any transaction costs) 
        thereof; or
            ``(B) in the case of any loan issued on an interest-bearing 
        basis, the stated principal amount thereof.
    ``(d) Fees.--(1) Reasonable origination or scoring charges for the 
loan guarantee program under this section are to be paid pro rata as 
each guarantee or increment of guarantee is issued. Such charges may be 
financed as part of the loans or increments guaranteed under this 
section. Except for the charges provided in this section, no other fees 
or charges shall be payable to the Corporation in connection with the 
loan guarantee program.
    ``(2) Paragraph (1) does not in any way preclude the voluntary 
participation of eligible investors in any other OPIC program which may 
or may not require the payment of charges.
    ``(e) Nonapplicability of Other Laws.--The loan guarantees 
authorized to be issued under this section may be made available under 
the terms and conditions specified in this section notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, rule, regulation, or practice, except for the 
Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990.
    ``(f) Subject to Appropriations.--The authority to issue loan 
guarantees under this section may be exercised only to such extent or 
in such amounts as are provided in advance in appropriation Acts. 
Appropriations made pursuant to such authority are authorized to remain 
available during the period beginning on the date of enactment of this 
Act, and ending September 30, 1995.
    ``(g) Savings Provision.--The termination of the authorities of 
this section on September 30, 1995, shall not affect any guarantee 
issued before such date.''.

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