Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 27 (Monday, February 10, 2025)

[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 27 (Monday, February 10, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H595-H596]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

CHINESE CURRENCY ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2025

Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 386) to require the United States Governor of, and
the United States Executive Director at, the International Monetary
Fund to oppose an increase in the weight of the Chinese renminbi in the
Special Drawing Rights basket of the Fund, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:

H.R. 386

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 ``Chinese Currency
Accountability Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. OPPOSITION OF THE UNITED STATES TO AN INCREASE IN THE
WEIGHT OF THE CHINESE RENMINBI IN THE SPECIAL
DRAWING RIGHTS BASKET OF THE INTERNATIONAL
MONETARY FUND.

The Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United
States Governor of, and the United States Executive Director
at, the International Monetary Fund to use the voice and vote
of the United States to oppose any increase in the weight of
the Chinese renminbi in the basket of currencies used to
determine the value of Special Drawing Rights, unless the
Secretary of the Treasury has submitted to the Committee on
Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the
Senate a written report which includes a certification that--
(1) the People's Republic of China is in compliance with
all its obligations under Article VIII of the Articles of
Agreement of the Fund;
(2) in the preceding 12 months, there has not been a report
submitted under section 3005 of the Omnibus Trade and
Competitiveness Act of 1988 or section 701 of the Trade
Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 in which the
People's Republic of China has been found to have manipulated
its currency; and
(3) the People's Republic of China adheres to the rules and
principles of the Paris Club and the OECD Arrangement on
Officially Supported Export Credits.

SEC. 3. SUNSET.

Section 2 shall have no force or effect beginning 10 years
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Arkansas (Mr. Hill) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Vargas) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arkansas.

General Leave

Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous material on this bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Arkansas?
There was no objection.
Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 386, the Chinese
Currency Accountability Act.
I thank my good friend, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Davidson), for
sponsoring this important legislation.
As chairman of the House Financial Services Committee in this
Congress, I am delighted that Mr. Davidson has assumed the chairmanship
on our Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and
International Financial Institutions.
The Chinese Currency Accountability Act is not a new initiative. It
passed the House under suspension of the rules last year after our
committee reported it unanimously to the full House.
This bill is important to limit China's influence over one of our
most crucial international, multilateral organizations. The
International Monetary Fund, the IMF, acts as the world's critical
lender to nations, particularly those heavily indebted, to handle
critical balance of payments financing. It conducts its business
through Special Drawing Rights, or SDRs.
SDRs not only serve as a unit of account for the IMF, but they also
act as a reserve asset on the balance sheet of central banks and, as
such, SDR assets earn interest.
Prior to 2016, both the value and the interest rate of the SDR was
determined by a basket of currencies issued by the independent central
banks of the world and overseen by democratic governments. These
currencies were the U.S. dollar, the euro, the Japanese yen, and the
pound sterling in the United Kingdom.
In 2016, the IMF then added the Chinese renminbi to the basket, even
though the use of the renminbi was miniscule and the People's Bank of
China is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. Mr. Speaker, I
don't believe that the rule of law in China merits this inclusion.
The decision in 2022 by the IMF to increase the weight of the Chinese
currency in that basket was equally shocking. Not only did China's
political control of the central bank remain unchanged, but the IMF
also knew that China's predatory lending through its Belt and Road
predatory lending program to emerging markets was threatening the
future of the IMF's own programs.
The fact that it went ahead and boosted China's weight in that
important SDR basket at the Fund is an embarrassment. Now the IMF finds
itself lecturing other countries about central bank independence, but
it charges them interest that is partially determined by the decisions
at the People's Bank of China.
Hopefully, on this House floor, that irony is not lost on any Member
or any

[[Page H596]]

of the countries on the Board of Directors at the IMF.
Mr. Davidson's bill would put an end to rewarding China's bad
behavior. His legislation would require the Treasury Department to
oppose further increases for Chinese renminbi in the IMF's currency
basket until the Department of the Treasury certifies that China is in
compliance with the IMF Articles of Agreement and adheres to the
lending standards upheld by the world's major creditors.
In other words, Mr. Speaker, H.R. 386 isn't about holding China to a
double standard. It means forcing the People's Republic of China to
follow the same international rules of the road if it wants to enjoy
the benefits of multilateralism and global leadership.
Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend Mr. Davidson for this important
measure. I urge all of my colleagues to support it, and I reserve the
balance of my time
Mr. VARGAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 386, the Chinese Currency
Accountability Act, sponsored by my friend and the gentleman from Ohio
(Mr. Davidson).
Mr. Speaker, this bill would require the Secretary of the Treasury to
oppose a future percentage increase in the weight of China's currency
in the IMF's international reserve asset known as the Special Drawing
Rights, or SDRs, unless the Secretary of the Treasury independently
certifies that China is in compliance with certain obligations to the
IMF and with other international standards.
While I support this bill and its intentions, I will note that the
Treasury Department stresses that, due to confidentiality between the
IMF and its member countries, it is impossible for the Secretary to
independently certify that China is complying with the IMF obligations.
I hope that Representative Davidson and his colleagues will work with
us to make changes to this bill to ensure that it could be executed as
intended.
I also must add that it is enormously ironic that we are passing a
bill focused on a nation's transparency at a time when President Trump
is running one of the least transparent governments in our Nation's
history.
As the last Trump term starts, we, again, do not have disclosures or
divestment from the President, meaning we don't know how he is
personally benefiting from his administration's actions.
For example, President Trump introduced meme coins for himself and
his wife, making it possible for any friend or foe with business before
the President to trade millions in Trump cryptocurrency without any
identification and verification.
Further, Trump's co-president, Elon Musk, is also refusing to
publicly disclose and divest from his conflicted investments, despite
being a fake employee of the government who has access to millions of
Americans' taxpayer dollars and personally identifiable information. It
is transparency for the average American, but not for Trump and his
oligarchs.
To fight corruption and kleptocracy, it is vital for the United
States to have transparency in government. If we expect it of others,
then we should model it and demand it for ourselves.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman
from Ohio (Mr. Davidson), the bill's sponsor and author.
Mr. DAVIDSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge this body to support
H.R. 386, the Chinese Currency Accountability Act of 2025.
Mr. Speaker, this critical bill ensures that the United States stands
firm against increasing the weight of the Chinese renminbi in the
International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights, their currency
basket, unless China changes course.
Frankly, China operates the Belt and Road Initiative in competition
with the IMF, so this is a very modest proposal and very incremental.
China should not even participate in the IMF while they are working to
actually undermine the IMF with their alternative, the Belt and Road
Initiative.
Additionally, the Special Drawing Rights are a useful global reserve
asset, providing IMF members with claims on five major currencies: the
dollar, the euro, now the renminbi, but also the Japanese yen and the
British pound.
Most notably, this currency basket influences the IMF lending rate.
All other central banks participating are market based. In 2016, the
IMF decided they were going to include a nonmarket-based currency, the
Chinese renminbi.
More concerning, in 2022, as Chairman Hill pointed out, the IMF
actually increased the weight to 12.8 percent, making it the third most
prominent currency, even though China lacks independence.
This bill directs the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to oppose any
further increase in the renminbi's weight unless China complies with
its IMF obligations, that it is found to not be a currency manipulator,
and that it adheres to the Paris Club and OECD rules on export credits.
None of this undermines China's growth or sovereignty. Instead, it
points them to the path that they already promised to pursue when they
chose to participate.
Further, when China joined the World Trade Organization, they pledged
to become a market economy. While they made early progress, China has
ceased such efforts, and they have instead worked to undermine Western
institutions like the International Monetary Fund.
This bill has bipartisan support, having passed the House last
September.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds
to the gentleman from Ohio.
Mr. DAVIDSON. Finally, the CBO estimates it will have no significant
impact on spending or revenue. Our foreign policy and financial
institutions should advance our interests, not undermine them.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

{time} 1630

Mr. VARGAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, as China expands both its economy and global influence,
it has been accused of manipulating its currency. This includes the use
of its currency at international institutions like the IMF.
This bill would empower the Treasury Department to address that
issue, which is a laudable goal. We should fight for the same type of
transparency for our own government and government officials, including
President Donald Trump and co-president Elon Musk.
It is a good bill, and I support it.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield
back the balance of my time.
Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my
time.
Mr. Speaker, I will echo the comments of my friend from Ohio (Mr.
Davidson) about the fact that China is not a full market economy. It
has not met its obligations to act as a good sovereign on settling
creditor concerns. The belt and road policies of China have deeply
indebted so many global south nations in such a way that the IMF does
not have a full picture of their financial status in order to have
access to the IMF's lending authorities.
This is just another way, Mr. Speaker, for this House to, I think,
make better policy and that we ask the IMF to have full transparency on
what is happening in China and their participation with the Fund. One
way to do that is to accomplish the worthy objectives here in H.R. 386.
I ask all my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this
bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Taylor). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 386.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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