I 111th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 4961 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 25, 2010 Ms. Clarke (for herself, Mr. Meeks of New York, Ms. Fudge, and Mr. Meek of Florida) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To provide for the establishment of the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the Haitian Private Sector Encouragement Act of 2010.
2.
Purposes
The purposes of this Act are to promote— (1)development of the Haitian private sector, including small business, the agriculture sector, and joint ventures with the United States and host country participants, and (2)policies and practices conducive to private sector development in Haiti, through loans, grants, equity investments, feasibility studies, technical assistance, training, insurance, guarantees, and other measures.
3.
Designation of Haitian-American Enterprise Fund
(a)
Designation
The President is authorized to designate one private, nonprofit organization established under State law as eligible to receive funds and support under this Act upon a determination by the President that the organization has been established for the purposes described in section 2. For purposes of this Act, the organization so designated shall be referred to as the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund. (b)
Consultation with Congress
Before designating an organization under subsection (a), the President shall consult with— (1)the majority leader and minority leader of the Senate; and (2)the Speaker and minority leader of the House of Representatives. (c)
Additional requirements
Except to the extent inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, paragraphs (3) through (5) of section 201(d) of the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 (22 U.S.C. 5421(d)) shall apply to the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund to the same extent and in the same manner as such paragraphs apply to the Polish-American Enterprise Fund, the Hungarian-American Enterprise Fund, the Southern Africa Enterprise Development Fund, and other similarly situated enterprise funds established by the United States Government.
4.
Grant to Haitian-American Enterprise Fund
(a)
In general
The President, acting through the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, shall, from amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization of appropriations under section 7, provide a grant to the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund, which shall be used to— (1)carry out the purposes described in section 2, including to promote the policies and practices described in subsection (b); and (2)pay the administrative expenses of the Enterprise Fund. (b)
Policies and practices
The policies and practices referred to in subsection (a)(1) are policies and practices conducive to the development of private property rights for the citizens of Haiti, particularly Haitian citizens of limited economic means, through integration of extralegal property arrangements employed by some Haitian citizens into comprehensive modern property recordation systems that fix the economic potential of assets, integrate disperse ownership information into one system, hold citizens accountable, make assets fungible, connect citizens to one another, and protect the integrity of commercial transactions. (c)
Oversight
The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development shall monitor the activities of the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund.
5.
Treatment equivalent to other enterprise funds; consultation with other enterprise funds
(a)
In general
Except to the extent inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, subsections (f) through (p) of section 201 of the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 (22 U.S.C. 5421) shall apply to the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund to the same extent and in the same manner as such subsections apply to the Polish-American Enterprise Fund, the Hungarian-American Enterprise Fund, the Southern Africa Enterprise Development Fund, and other similarly situated enterprise funds established by the United States Government. (b)
Consultation with other enterprise funds
The Haitian-American Enterprise Fund may consult extensively with other similarly situated enterprise funds established by the United States Government in order to seek out best practices relating to the start-up phase and other ongoing business matters of the Enterprise Fund.
6.
Haitian-American Economic Oversight Panel
(a)
Establishment
The President is authorized to establish the Haitian-American Economic Oversight Panel (in this section referred to as the Oversight Panel). (b)
Duties
The Oversight Panel shall monitor the activities of the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund and all other economic development initiatives of the United States for Haiti. (c)
Membership
The Oversight Panel shall consist of individuals appointed by the President after consultation with Congress, from among United States citizens who are not officers or employees of any government and who have demonstrated concern and commitment to the economic development of Haiti. (d)
Report
The Oversight Panel shall submit to Congress and the President an annual report on implementation of the Oversight Panel’s duties for the preceding year, including a detailed description of incidents of waste, fraud, and abuse relating to economic development initiatives of the United States for Haiti. (e)
Rule of construction
Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the authorities of the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund.
7.
Authorization of appropriations
(a)
In general
There are authorized to be appropriated to the President to carry out this Act $240,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. (b)
Availability
Amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) are authorized to remain available until expended. (c)
Nonapplicability of other laws
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) may be expended by the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund for the purposes of this Act.