Congressional Record, Volume 156 Issue 31 (Friday, March 5, 2010)

[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 31 (Friday, March 5, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1239-S1240]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

HAITI RECOVERY ACT

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed
to Calendar No. 276, S. 2961.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

A bill (S. 2961) to provide debt relief to Haiti, and for
other purposes.

There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill
which had been reported from the Committee on Foreign Relations with
amendments; as follows:
(The parts of the bill intended to be stricken are shown in boldface
brackets and the parts of the bill intended to be inserted are shown in
italics.)

S. 2961

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 ``Haiti Recovery Act''.

SEC. 2. DEBT RELIEF FOR HAITI.

(a) In General.--
(1) Cancellation of debt.--The Secretary of the Treasury
should direct the United States Executive Director to each
international financial institution to advocate in such
institution--
(A) the cancellation of any and all remaining debt
obligations of Haiti, including debt obligations incurred
[after] before the date of the enactment of this Act [and
before February 1, 2012];
(B) the provision of debt service relief for all [remaining
payments of Haiti] payments of Haiti remaining on the date of
the enactment of this Act; and
(C) to the extent practicable, the extension of any new
assistance to Haiti be primarily in the form of grants, [not
loans] until February 1, 2012.
(2) International financial institution.--The term
``international financial institution'' means each of the
institutions listed in section 1701(c)(2) of the
International Financial Institutions Act (22 U.S.C.
262r(c)(2)) and includes the International Development Fund
for Agricultural Development.
(3) Sense of the senate.--It is the sense of the Senate
that international financial institutions should cancel any
debt incurred by Haiti after the date of the enactment of
this Act and before February 1, 2012, so that Haiti can
rebuild after the devastation of the earthquake of January
2010.
(b) Use of Certain Funds for Poverty Reduction.--The
Secretary of the Treasury should instruct the United States
Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund to
advocate the use of [the proceeds, in excess of May 2009
projections] some of the realized windfall profits that
exceed the required contribution to the Poverty Reduction and
Growth Trust (as referenced in the IMF Reforms Financial
Facilities for Low-Income Countries Public Information Notice
(PIN) No. 09/94) from the ongoing sale of 12,965,649 ounces
of gold acquired since the second Amendment of the Fund's
Article of Agreement, to provide debt stock relief, debt
service relief, loan subsidies, and grants for [low-income
countries that are eligible for the Poverty Reduction and
Growth Facility or any other programs designed to assist low-
income countries, including Haiti] Haiti.
(c) Securing Other Relief for Haiti.--The Secretary of the
Treasury and the Secretary of State should use all
appropriate diplomatic influence to secure cancellation of
any and all remaining bilateral debt of Haiti.

SEC. 3. INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT.

(a) Trust Fund.--The Secretary of the Treasury should
support the creation and utilization of [an Inter-American
Development Bank] a multilateral trust fund for Haiti that
would leverage potential United States contributions and
promote bilateral donations to such a fund for the purpose of
making investments in Haiti's [infrastructure] future,
including efforts to combat soil degradation and promote
reforestation and infrastructure investments such as electric
grids, roads, water and sanitation facilities, and other
critical infrastructure projects.
(b) Increase in Transfer of Earnings.--The Secretary of the
Treasury should direct the United States Executive Director
of the Inter-American Development Bank to seek to increase
the transfer of its earnings to the Fund for Special
Operations, [which finances programming in Haiti and other
weak economies in the Western Hemisphere.] and to a trust
fund or grant facility for Haiti.

Mr. REID. I now ask unanimous consent the committee-reported
amendments be agreed to; the bill, as amended, be read a third time,
passed, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table, and any
statements be printed in the Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The committee amendments were agreed to.
The bill (S. 2961), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a
third reading, was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

S. 2961

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 ``Haiti Recovery Act''.

SEC. 2. DEBT RELIEF FOR HAITI.

[[Page S1240]]

Growth Trust (as referenced in the IMF Reforms Financial
Facilities for Low-Income Countries Public Information Notice
(PIN) No. 09/94) from the ongoing sale of 12,965,649 ounces
of gold acquired since the second Amendment of the Fund's
Article of Agreement, to provide debt stock relief, debt
service relief, loan subsidies, and grants for Haiti.
(c) Securing Other Relief for Haiti.--The Secretary of the
Treasury and the Secretary of State should use all
appropriate diplomatic influence to secure cancellation of
any and all remaining bilateral debt of Haiti.

SEC. 3. INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT.

(a) Trust Fund.--The Secretary of the Treasury should
support the creation and utilization of a multilateral trust
fund for Haiti that would leverage potential United States
contributions and promote bilateral donations to such a fund
for the purpose of making investments in Haiti's future,
including efforts to combat soil degradation and promote
reforestation and infrastructure investments such as electric
grids, roads, water and sanitation facilities, and other
critical infrastructure projects.
(b) Increase in Transfer of Earnings.--The Secretary of the
Treasury should direct the United States Executive Director
of the Inter-American Development Bank to seek to increase
the transfer of its earnings to the Fund for Special
Operations and to a trust fund or grant facility for Haiti.

____________________