[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3622 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3622

    To authorize the President to negotiate the creation of a North 
American Investment Fund between the Governments of Canada, of Mexico, 
 and of the United States to increase the economic competitiveness of 
                   North America in a global economy.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 29, 2006

Mr. Cornyn (for himself and Mr. Coleman) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To authorize the President to negotiate the creation of a North 
American Investment Fund between the Governments of Canada, of Mexico, 
 and of the United States to increase the economic competitiveness of 
                   North America in a global economy.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``North American Investment Fund 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NORTH AMERICAN INVESTMENT FUND.

    The President is authorized to negotiate with the Government of 
Canada and the Government of Mexico to establish a North American 
Investment Fund (referred to in this Act as the ``Fund'') by--
            (1) agreeing to certain amendments to the November 1993 
        Agreement Between the Government of the United States of 
        America and the Government of the United Mexican States 
        Concerning the Establishment of a Border Environment 
        Cooperation Commission and a North American Development Bank; 
        or
            (2) negotiating an agreement with the Government of Canada 
        and the Government of Mexico to establish and administer the 
        Fund.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of the Fund shall be--
            (1) to increase the economic competitiveness of North 
        America in a global economy;
            (2) to reduce the income gap between Mexico and Canada, and 
        between Mexico and the United States; and
            (3) to promote economic development in Mexico in the areas 
        of infrastructure, education, technology, and job training.

SEC. 4. PROJECTS FUNDED.

    (a) In General.--Grants shall be awarded from the Fund for projects 
to carry out the purposes described in section 3, including projects--
            (1) to construct roads in Mexico to facilitate trade 
        between Mexico and Canada, and Mexico and the United States;
            (2) to encourage the development and improve the quality of 
        primary, secondary, and post-secondary education throughout 
        Mexico;
            (3) to expand the deployment of communications and 
        broadband infrastructure throughout Mexico, with emphasis on 
        rural and underserved areas; and
            (4) to expand job training and workforce development for 
        high-growth industries in Mexico.
    (b) Project Selection.--
            (1) In general.--The agreement described in section 2 shall 
        include guidelines for determining which projects will receive 
        financial assistance from the Fund.
            (2) Priority.--In selecting grantees to carry out projects 
        described in subsection (a)(1), priority should be given to 
        projects in the interior and southern regions of Mexico that 
        connect to more developed markets in the United States and 
        Canada.

SEC. 5. CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FUND.

    (a) In General.--The agreement described in section 2 shall require 
the Governments of Canada, of Mexico, and of the United States to 
contribute to the Fund, subject to the limitations under subsection 
(b).
    (b) Limitations on Contributions by the United States and Canada.--
The agreement described in section 2 shall include provisions that 
permit Canada and the United States to contribute to the Fund if the 
Government of Mexico--
            (1) increases the tax revenue collected by such Government, 
        with the goal of annually collecting an amount of such revenue 
        that is equal to 18 percent of the annual gross domestic 
        product of Mexico; and
            (2) carries out a program of reforms to increase private 
        investment and economic growth, reduce poverty, and maintain 
        economic stability in Mexico.

SEC. 6. TERM OF THE FUND.

    The agreement described in section 2 shall require that the Fund--
            (1) operate for an initial period of 10 years; and
            (2) cease operations at the end of such 10-year period, 
        unless the Governments of Canada, of Mexico, and of the United 
        States agree to extend the period of operation beyond such 
        initial period.

SEC. 7. REPORT.

    Not later than 180 days after the date on which the Government of 
Mexico complies with the criteria described in paragraphs (1) and (2) 
of section 5(b), and once every 180 days after such date of compliance 
and before the finalization of the agreement described in section 2, 
the President shall submit a report to Congress detailing the progress 
made by the Government of the United States to establish the Fund in 
accordance with this Act.
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