[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 6284-6295]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             MICROENTERPRISE FOR SELF-RELIANCE ACT OF 1999

  Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, 
I call up House Resolution 136 and ask for its immediate consideration.
  The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

                              H. Res. 136

       Resolved, That at any time after the adoption of this 
     resolution the Speaker may, pursuant to clause 2(b) of rule 
     XVIII, declare the House resolved into the Committee of the 
     Whole House on the state of the Union for consideration of 
     the bill (H.R. 1143) to establish a program to provide 
     assistance for programs of credit and other financial 
     services for microenterprises in developing countries, and 
     for other purposes. The first reading of the bill shall be 
     dispensed with. Points of order against consideration of the 
     bill for failure to comply with clause 4(a) of rule XIII are 
     waived. General debate shall be confined to the bill and 
     shall not exceed one hour equally divided and controlled by 
     the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on 
     International Relations. After general debate the bill shall 
     be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule. Each 
     section of the bill shall be considered as read. During 
     consideration of the bill for amendment, the chairman of the 
     Committee of the Whole may accord priority in recognition on 
     the basis of whether the Member offering an amendment has 
     caused it to be printed in the portion of the Congressional 
     Record designated for that purpose in clause 8 of rule XVIII. 
     Amendments so printed shall be considered as read. The 
     chairman of the Committee of the Whole may: (1) postpone 
     until a time during further consideration in the Committee of 
     the Whole a request for a recorded vote on any amendment; and 
     (2) reduce to five minutes the minimum time for electronic 
     voting on any postponed question that follows another 
     electronic vote without intervening business, provided that 
     the minimum time for electronic voting on the first in any 
     series of questions shall be 15 minutes. At the conclusion of 
     consideration of the bill for amendment the Committee shall 
     rise and report the bill to the House with such amendments as 
     may have been adopted. The previous question shall be 
     considered as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to 
     final passage without intervening motion except one motion to 
     recommit with or without instructions.

                              {time}  1145

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Ewing). The gentleman from Florida (Mr. 
Diaz-Balart) is recognized for 1 hour.
  Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield 
the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hall), pending 
which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration 
of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.
  House Resolution 136 is an open rule providing for the consideration 
of H.R. 1143, the Microenterprise for Self-Reliance Act of 1999. The 
purpose of the legislation is to establish a program to provide 
assistance for programs of credit and other financial services for 
microenterprises in developing countries. The rule provides for the 
customary 1 hour of general debate, equally divided and controlled by 
the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on 
International Relations.
  The rule waives clause 4(a) of rule XIII requiring a 3-day layover of 
the committee report against consideration of the bill. In addition, 
the rule provides that the bill shall be read by section. The rule 
permits the Chair to grant priority in recognition to Members who have 
preprinted their amendments and considers them as read.
  Further, as has become standard practice in this Congress, the Chair 
is allowed to postpone recorded votes and to reduce the time for 
electronic voting on postponed votes, and finally the rule provides for 
one motion to recommit with or without instructions.
  Mr. Speaker, to keep with our record of fair rules for the 106th 
Congress, I am pleased to report that this resolution is yet another 
open rule that affords any Member the opportunity to offer any germane 
amendments.

[[Page 6285]]

  House Resolution 1143 is much needed legislation to enhance credit 
opportunities for microenterprises in developing countries. These 
businesses are so small, 10 or fewer employees, and the average loan is 
so low; most are less than $300; that they are thought of as 
microenterprises as opposed to small businesses. Microenterprises are 
the economy of the very poorest segment of the economy in developing 
countries, and estimates of their number range from one-third to 
perhaps one-half of the world's businesses.
  Microenterprises have been an area of interest for U.S. foreign 
assistance for many years. In 1994, the USIA, USAID, formally launched 
the microenterprise initiative in partnership with Congress to expand 
funding for that department's microenterprise programs. The summit's 
goal for that year was to target half of the microenterprise resources 
to serve the poorest with loans under $300.
  The ability to obtain credit is one of the most important factors in 
starting or expanding a microenterprise. Often these loan amounts are 
so low that a commercial bank would not find them profitable, or an 
entrepreneur has very little in the way of collateral, so the bank 
would consider them too risky. Yet most micro-loan institutions boast 
repayment rates of 97 percent or better, putting them at least on a par 
with major banks who lend to more affluent and traditional borrowers. I 
believe that supporting microentrepreneurs is an excellent investment 
in dramatically improving the quality of life of millions throughout 
the world. Providing access to loans can help low-income entrepreneurs 
expand their inventory or even hire additional employees and can truly 
enhance a person's self-esteem by giving him or her a genuine 
opportunity in life.
  In addition, microfinance can serve as a powerful tool for building a 
more inclusive financial sector which serves the broad majority of the 
world's population, including the very poor and women, and thus 
generates more social stability and prosperity. This legislation states 
that the United States should coordinate among the G-7 nations to 
bolster support for the microenterprise sector by leveraging our 
investment with that of other donor nations.
  H.R. 1143 appropriately makes microenterprise development an 
important component of U.S. foreign economic policy and assistance by 
expanding on the commitment of the USAID in its 1994 microenterprise 
initiative. I believe that in improving the access of the poorest, 
especially women, to much needed financial resources in developing 
countries will lead to the development of free, open and equitable 
international economic systems and contribute to the spread of freedom 
and human dignity in the world.
  I would like to commend the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman), the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), my dear colleague from the 
Committee on Rules, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hall), and the others 
who have worked so hard on this legislation for their efforts in 
bringing this very important bipartisan bill forward. I strongly 
support H.R. 1143 and urge all of my colleagues to support both this 
open rule and the underlying important bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the rule.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HALL of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, the gentleman from Florida 
(Mr. Diaz-Balart), for yielding me the time.
  This is an open rule. It will allow for full and fair debate on H.R. 
1143 which is called the microenterprise bill for self-reliance. It is 
an act of 1999 of which I am proud to be an original cosponsor.
  As my colleague from Florida has described, this rule provides for 1 
hour of general debate to be equally divided and controlled by the 
chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on International 
Relations.
  The rule permits amendments under the 5-minute rule, which is the 
normal amending process in the House. All Members on both sides of the 
aisle, they will have the opportunity to offer germane amendments.
  This is a bipartisan bill that reflects broad congressional support.
  A microenterprise is a small business with as few as one or as many 
as ten employees. Loans to these companies or small businesses are 
among the most cost-effective ways to help the poor lift themselves out 
of poverty.
  I became familiar with the potential of microenterprise to reduce 
poverty because of the House Select Committee on Hunger, and I used to 
chair the international task force of the committee, and later I was 
chairman of the full committee. The Hunger Committee held hearings, we 
issued reports, we conducted public forums to inform Congress and the 
public on the importance of microcredit to reducing hunger and poverty 
around the world. In one report the Hunger Committee concluded that 
small loans to microenterprises can significantly raise the living 
standards of the poor, increase food security and bring about 
sustainable improvements in local economies. The committee further 
concluded that credit to microenterprises is one way to help end the 
cycle of poverty and hunger among urban and rural landless poor in 
developing countries. The bill before us today strengthens and enhances 
the United States leadership in the field of microenterprise 
development to fight hunger and poverty in the world.
  I want to congratulate the distinguished chairman, the gentleman from 
New York (Mr. Gilman), the ranking minority member, the gentleman from 
Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson) of the Committee on International Relations 
for their commitment to microenterprise and other poverty alleviation 
programs and for their hard work in bringing this important legislation 
to the floor. Special thanks is also due to the gentleman from New York 
(Mr. Houghton) for his instrumental leadership on this issue.
  The bill is very similar to a measure that was introduced by the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Houghton) and myself in the 105th 
Congress. An amended version of the bill passed the House on a 393 vote 
to 21, but it got stalled in the Senate. I am particularly pleased that 
today's bill very closely resembles the original Amo Houghton bill and 
Hall bill from the last Congress than the version which passed the 
House.
  No U.S.A. program is more effective in assisting poor people to end 
their own poverty than microenterprise development. The dollars have a 
multiplier effect since they are recycled to new beneficiaries when 
loans are repaid.
  This bill is a good bill, and it will improve the lives of many of 
the world's poor with a minimum of cost. It is an open rule that was 
adopted by a voice vote of the Committee on Rules. I urge adoption of 
the rule and of the bill.
  Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), the distinguished chairman 
of the Committee on Rules.
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this rule, and I 
would like to thank my friend from Miami, Florida (Mr. Diaz-Balart) for 
yielding me this time.
  The underlying bill is vital to the economic growth of developing 
countries. H.R. 1143 is a bipartisan bill cosponsored by my friend from 
Dayton, Ohio (Mr. Hall), and a number of others and is designed to 
provide assistance for programs of credit and other financial services 
for microenterprises in developing countries.
  For a number of years I have been proud to be a supporter of 
microenterprise programs. I support H.R. 1143 because it moves us 
forward and sets the direction for the future of microenterprise 
programs.
  One of the most important elements of this legislation is the 
requirement to increase the amount of assistance devoted to credit 
activities designed to reach the poorest sector in developing countries 
and to improve the access to the poorest, particularly women, to 
microenterprise credit in developing

[[Page 6286]]

countries. We have been informed by the World Bank that more than 1.2 
billion people in the developing world, one-fifth of the world's entire 
population, subsists on less than $1 a day. Today this Congress sends a 
message that America not only supports the political and religious 
freedom of all people, but also advocates the economic freedom of 
people in nations across this globe. The bill will make microenterprise 
development an important element of United States economic policy and 
assistance.
  Mr. Speaker, Ronald Reagan once said that part of our foreign policy 
to maintain peace abroad was to promote market-oriented solutions to 
international problems, telling the story abroad of America's free 
enterprise way of life. As the United States leads the way in 
developing a new global financial architecture, I believe that 
microenterprise will play an indispensable role in that quest.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly support this rule, and I urge my colleagues 
to support the legislation as it moves forward.
  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee).
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from 
Ohio very much for yielding this time to me, and I ask to be able to 
speak for 2 minutes.
  Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hall) for this 
time and join in by applauding this rule and, as well, acknowledging 
the vitality of the microenterprise program in developing nations. 
According to the World Bank, more than 1.2 billion people in the 
developing world, or one-fifth of the world's population, as we have 
just heard the previous speaker acknowledge, lives on less than $1 a 
day, and for Americans that is obviously a stark figure and a shocking 
figure. But at the same time there is hope, there is genuine desire to 
do better, and particularly for those small businesses and small-
opportunity individuals in developing nations.
  Wherever one goes and visits, whether or not it is the continent of 
Africa, whether or not it is in South America that is close to Texas 
and Central America, they will find those individuals that simply say, 
``If you'll give me a fishing rod instead of a fish, I can make a 
difference.''
  We had an opportunity in the session, the work recess session, to 
join a presidential mission dealing with the tragedy of HIV AIDS in 
Africa. Interestingly enough, one would ask how does the 
microenterprise program deal with the question of HIV AIDS? Mr. 
Speaker, the real issue along with the tragedy of AIDS, and prevention, 
and education, the impact on children, the number of offerings that 
will come about because of the tragedy of AIDS in Africa, is the idea 
of giving communities an opportunity to self invest and to create 
businesses where they can stay in these rural areas as opposed to 
traveling from place to place.

                              {time}  1200

  We met, for example, an elderly grandmother who was taking care of a 
number of her grandchildren due to the tragedy of them losing their 
parents to HIV/AIDS.
  Mr. Speaker, one might find it curious and interesting, but she was 
making banana beer. Part of her efforts were through the support of 
USAID. Of course, many of these programs interact, but the enterprise 
program impacts on giving opportunity to those who have ideas to ensure 
that there is a return on their investment.
  In February 1997, a global microcredit summit was held in Washington 
to launch a plan to expand access to credit for self-employment to the 
100 million of the world's poorest families by 2005. I cannot imagine 
us in any way doing something more effective, more efficient and more 
far-reaching than to help those individuals who wish to help themselves 
in developing nations. One of the points we have heard is that we do 
want to build our economy.
  Mr. Speaker, I would simply say that I support the microenterprise 
program and hope that we can continue to expand it.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the open rule for H.R. 1143, a bill 
to assist microenterprises in developing countries. This bill will 
authorize grant assistance to further the development of 
microenterprises in developing countries. The grants are to be provided 
to businesses, governments and other organizations in both the United 
States and abroad to expand the availability of financial services, 
credit and training for microentrepreneurs. In this manner these grants 
will assist the poorest of the poor in their endeavors to expand their 
incomes and their businesses.
  The most recent statistics provided by the World Bank, indicate that 
1.2 billion people in the developing world, or one-fifth of the world's 
population, subsist on less than $1 a day. That is right, they live on 
less than $1 a day. Women in poverty generally have larger workloads 
and less access to educational and economic opportunities than their 
male counterparts. This in turn means that women in these countries 
lack stable employment and frayed social safety nets.
  Many in the developing world turn to self-employment to generate 
their livelihoods. I know first hand, from my trips to Africa that a 
large percentage of the workers are self-employed. The poor have shown 
remarkable courage in the face of poverty and have demonstrated an 
uncanny ability to expand their incomes and business when they have 
access to loans at reasonable rates.
  It is the unfortunate truth that entrepreneurs are frozen in poverty 
because they cannot obtain sufficient credit at reasonable rates to 
build their asset base or expand their otherwise viable self-employment 
activities. It is not unusual for interest rates to be as high as 10 
percent per day.
  Similar measures have already proven successful in these developing 
countries. Nongovernmental organization such as the Grameen Bank in 
Bangladesh, in Kenya, and networks such as Accion International, have 
been particularly successful in lending to poorest of the poor. This 
measure helps both the business and the individual to develop a sense 
of accomplishment.
  I urge members to support this open rule which allows for bipartisan 
debate.
  Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman 
from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), the distinguished chairwoman of the 
Subcommittee on International Economic Policy and Trade of the 
Committee on International Relations.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the gentleman 
from Florida (Mr. Diaz-Balart) for yielding me this time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the resolution before us, H.R. 
1143. As we look at the reports issued by the World Health 
Organization, which document, as we have heard, that one-fifth of the 
world's population lives in extreme poverty and that poverty is one of 
the leading causes of death worldwide, the problem of how to help poor 
families appears so immense and widespread that it seems impossible to 
manage.
  This, Mr. Speaker, is where microcredit comes in. It is a new vision 
for ending world poverty and it provides access to credit for the 
world's poor to convert their ideas into thriving small businesses. 
People like Salomie Chung and Elisa Crespo from my hometown of south 
Florida, who with the assistance of Kathleen Gordon of Working Capital 
Florida and Gail Neumann of Results-Miami no longer need to worry about 
survival and basic existence because they are now successful 
entrepreneurs.
  These are just a few domestic examples, but microcredit is now at 
work in some form in over 40 countries.
  Overall, the rate of repayment of the more established programs 
ranges from 95 to 99 percent. Foreign assistance used under the 
microcredit program is loaned and paid back with interest and is then 
recycled and used for new loans, thus, reaching even more of the 
world's poor.
  Microcredit is an economically viable program which furthers U.S. 
development goals and humanitarian purposes, but it needs our 
unequivocal support to continue its mission and to build on its 
success.
  That is the objective, Mr. Speaker, of the bill before us, House 
Resolution 1143. It expands upon previous legislation and ensures that 
at least one-half of overall resources allocated for microcredit within 
USAID are to be directed to programs serving the poorest of the poor 
with loans under $300. This could mean that tens of thousands more of 
the poorest will have the opportunity to empower themselves out

[[Page 6287]]

of the state of poverty that they are currently in.
  The bill before us helps to guarantee the survival of programs which 
are endangered by crises beyond the control of the programs and of the 
borrowers. It calls for further action and initiative to be explored to 
help enhance the development of microcredit institutions.
  As H.R. 1143 states, the development of microenterprise is a vital 
factor in the stable growth of developing countries and in the 
development of free, open and equitable international economic systems.
  It is, therefore, in the best interest of the U.S. and of the United 
States Congress to support its growth and its expansion. By supporting 
H.R. 1143 and microcredit in general, we are investing in the human 
spirit and the desire of the world's poor to use their creativity, 
their talents and their skills to control their own destiny.
  For the future welfare of the men, women and children worldwide who 
suffer the pain inflicted by poverty, I ask my colleagues to vote in 
favor of H.R. 1143.
  Mr. HALL of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman 
from California (Mr. Filner).
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hall) 
for yielding me this time.
  Mr. Speaker, I, too, rise in support of H.R. 1143, which establishes 
assistance to microenterprise programs in developing countries. This 
bill is very important for a number of reasons which we have already 
heard. It establishes in law our support for microenterprise. Congress 
has not provided full authorization up until now for microenterprises 
in developing countries.
  Second, this bill sets aside increased resources for microenterprise 
programs for the next 2 years.
  Third, it ensures that half of the funding goes to programs which 
serve the very poor in loans of $300 or less. I recently saw some of 
these programs in Petra in Jordan, and in Marrakesh in Morocco.
  I have been a longtime supporter of microenterprise lending. Several 
years ago, my senior legislative assistant went to Bangladesh to view 
the Grameen Bank and microenterprise at work in that country. As many 
know, the Grameen Bank was one of the first to establish such a program 
and to make microloans available to the poorest of the poor.
  The premise of the Grameen Bank and other microenterprise programs is 
that the capitalist system in these countries does not have to be only 
for the rich, and credit should be seen as a human right. If we are 
looking for one single action that will enable the poor to overcome 
their poverty, we should choose credit. Charity and handouts help 
maintain and deepen poverty by taking away initiative. Human beings 
thrive on challenges, not on charity.
  The Grameen Bank is now owned by the poor people of Bangladesh and it 
works exclusively with poor people. The less one has, the higher 
priority one has for loans. If one has nothing, they get the highest 
priority.
  Ninety percent of the shares are owned by the borrowers. The board of 
directors consists of 13 members, nine of whom are elected by the 
borrowers and shareholders. It serves over 2.4 million borrowers, and 
the payback rate is 98 percent, money which can then be re-lent to 
others. So far, this program has lent out and has been repaid with over 
$2 billion in Bangladesh alone.
  There are many examples of how these microloans have changed the life 
of the borrower. My legislative assistant spoke to a woman in a village 
in central Bangladesh. Five years earlier when she was living in 
complete poverty with her six children starving, she turned with some 
hesitation to the Grameen Bank.
  Five years after her first loan, she graciously invited my assistant 
into her home, introduced her children who are all in school, and 
proudly showed off the cow that she had bought and the material she 
retails to support her family.
  The first years were not easy. In fact, she told of selling the milk 
from her cow when her children were still hungry, but she knew she had 
to repay the bank loan to get another one and she knew that that was 
the way out of her poverty.
  As my assistant left, she asked for her to pray that there would be 
no more widows in her village because life for a widow is just too 
hard.
  In a neighboring village, a young woman of 26 owned two goats, one 
cow, ten hens and two acres of land and was earning twice the national 
average income. Her son was in the eighth grade in a country where not 
quite half the children complete the fifth grade. She had had a hard 
life as she was abandoned at 3 months by her parents, raised by a 
neighbor, married at 12, abandoned again at 13, this time by her 
husband when she was pregnant. She had never earned more than $37 a 
year and owned no land.
  After her visit to the Grameen Bank, she began her own career which 
allowed her children to get to school and her to have a living wage.
  Replicated throughout the world and now in the United States also, 
microcredit programs are working to eliminate poverty worldwide. 
Working in partnership with groups like Results, they have set a goal 
of reaching 100 million of the world's poorest families.
  This bill is very important. It is a crucial piece that will help us 
reach our world and national goals. I urge my colleagues to support 
H.R. 1143.
  Mr. HALL of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would just say that the rule is open and it is a very, 
very good bill. This bill provides a lot of relief, a lot of help for 
hundreds of thousands of people across the world. We even do 
microenterprise very well in some States in our own country. It is a 
very good policy. I urge its adoption.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I fully agree with the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hall) 
and all the speakers who have so eloquently portrayed why the 
underlying legislation is so important and why we need to move forward 
with it today. I also support the rule. It is a fully open rule.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the 
previous question on the resolution.
  The previous question was ordered.
  The resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Gillmor). Pursuant to House Resolution 
136 and rule XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of 
the Whole House on the State of the Union for the consideration of the 
bill, H.R. 1143.

                              {time}  1211


                     In the Committee of the Whole

  Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the 
Whole House on the State of the Union for the consideration of the bill 
(H.R. 1143) to establish a program to provide assistance for programs 
of credit and other financial services for microenterprises in 
developing countries, and for other purposes, with Mr. Ewing in the 
chair.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered as having 
been read the first time.
  Under the rule, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Chairman, many of us have heard or seen the phenomenal success of 
microenterprise programs around the world. These programs reach the 
poorest of the poor with small loans that help them to work their way 
out of poverty.
  The record of these programs is impressive, with the poorest clients 
repaying their loans at rates between 95 and 98 percent. Unlike other 
assistance programs, we do not give funds away. We lend them to people 
once considered the worst credit risks on earth.
  Microenterprise programs proved that with access to credit, the poor 
can

[[Page 6288]]

repay their loans and work their way out of poverty.
  The bill before the House is a result of almost 4 years of consensus 
building between the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) and the 
ranking Democratic member, the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. 
Gejdenson).
  The gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson) and the gentleman from 
New York (Mr. Gilman) and many of us have worked for a number of years 
on microenterprise development programs from their first beginnings at 
the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh to today when microfinancing 
institutions are some of the largest lenders in many developing 
countries.
  The bill also builds on the work in the last Congress, the Houghton-
Hall bill. The authors of that legislation will recognize that much of 
the language in this bill came directly from their bill.
  This legislation started as a renewal of our bipartisan cooperative 
effort with the administration, including AID and the First Lady's 
office, to strengthen microfinance programs. We will recall the 
President's visit to Uganda where he visited a microfinance project and 
declared that this was one of the most successful ways to help the poor 
in developing countries to work their way out of poverty.
  Mr. Chairman, this bill accomplishes several key goals. First, it 
contains the essential language that half of all microenterprise 
resources go directly to support programs that provide $300 loans or 
lower to the poorest of the poor.
  This requirement traces back to the highly successful microcredit 
summit convened by Results to dedicate the international community to 
reaching half of the world's poor with credit programs by the year 
2005.

                              {time}  1215

  The bill adds a new section to the Foreign Assistance Act governing 
grants to microfinance institutions, authorizing $152 million in 
appropriations for fiscal year 2000 and $167 million for fiscal year 
2001.
  I will note that these are consensus figures of the Microenterprise 
Coalition, advocacy and practitioners alike, and they are not strongly 
opposed by the administration.
  The bill authorizes the micro and small credit program of AID that 
has helped many microentrepreneurs grow from small- to medium-sized 
businesses. The bill has also two major new sections that lay the 
foundation for the future growth of the microfinance sector.
  First, at the suggestion of the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. 
Gejdenson), the bill establishes a microfinance loan facility to help 
rescue institutions which the U.S. taxpayer has supported with 
liquidity and support to prevent collapse.
  We have all witnessed the destruction caused by Hurricane Mitch in 
Central America. The destruction nearly caused the collapse of several 
key microfinance institutions that the U.S. helped to build from the 
ground up. The ad hoc rescue package assembled by Brian Atwood at AID 
rescued these institutions so they can now head to recovery.
  We have also had other near collapses, and the facility will help 
address these emergencies in a more systematic way.
  Secondly, the bill calls for a number of reports by the President to 
lay out the future growth of these institutions, including a Federal 
charter. Using these reports, we hope to lay out a road map for the 
growth of the microfinance section over the next 10 years.
  This legislation has 26 original cosponsors and has been endorsed by 
the Microenterprise Coalition, including RESULTS and FINCA. It is my 
understanding that the administration has moved mightily and now has 
only some concerns with the legislation, and does not oppose its 
adoption today.
  The gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson) and the gentleman from 
New York (Mr. Gilman) and I have one amendment that will make some 
technical changes to the bill, to its loan facility, that were worked 
out with AID. Other than that, I am not aware of any other amendments 
that will be offered today.
  I urge the support of this legislation. It is a good bill.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and 
I rise in support of H.R. 1143.
  Mr. Chairman, this legislation is a product of many years of hard 
work on behalf of microenterprise. I want to thank the ranking member, 
the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson) and the gentleman from 
New York (Chairman Gilman) for several years of hard work on this 
issue.
  I would also like to recognize two great leaders who have done so 
much to advance the cause of microcredit lending to the poor and to 
empower women in developing countries. First Lady Hillary Rodham 
Clinton and AID administrator Brian Atwood have worked tirelessly to 
make sure that the United States takes a leadership role to expand 
access to credit for self-employment to 100 million of the world's 
poorest families. One-fifth of the world's population exists on less 
than $1 a day, and 32,000 children die each day from preventable 
malnutrition.
  I had the opportunity to visit Ghana and South Africa last week, and 
I met with many women entrepreneurs who were the primary income earners 
for their families. Access to just a small amount of capital, I was 
told, would help them raise the standard of living for their entire 
families.
  Many of the poor who do not have access to microenterprise programs 
are forced to pay interest rates of 10 percent per day to money 
lenders. In contrast, interest rates on microcredit loans average 
between 2 percent and 5 percent per week. The return rate on these 
loans is between 95 percent and 99 percent.
  Let me briefly explain what this bill does. It permanently 
establishes two new sections in statutory law to govern microenterprise 
grants and loans. Under the grants section, it authorizes grants to 
support microlending programs. These grants are generally used to start 
new microlending programs. It authorizes $152 million for fiscal year 
2000, and $167 million for fiscal year 2001 for microenterprise 
programs. It mandates 50 percent of all microenterprise resources to be 
used for poverty lending, defined as institutions that provide credit 
and other financial services to the poorest with loans of $300 or less 
in 1995 dollars.
  Currently, 68 percent of loans are $300 or less, and about 47 percent 
of total resources support poverty lending.
  This bill creates a loan facility inside of AID. The facility will 
provide concessional loans to United States-sponsored microfinance 
institutions to prevent bankruptcy caused by natural disasters, 
national wars, civil conflict, or national financial crises. The 
facility would be supervised by representatives of the Department of 
the Treasury, AID, and two representatives from the NGO community. It 
requires the President to prepare a report to Congress on the most 
cost-effective methods for increasing the access of poor people to 
credit, other financial services, and related training.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Ballenger).
  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 1143, 
the Microenterprise Self-Reliance Act. The low-cost loans and training 
opportunities provided by this program create unimaginable opportunity 
and hope for people living in the poorest and most desolate areas of 
the world.
  As a Member who is personally committed to the growth and prosperity 
of Central and South America, I have witnessed firsthand the benefits 
of microenterprise and the microcredit programs to the poorest of the 
poor. Through these programs, the U.S. has been able to encourage 
economic growth and self-dependency in countries less fortunate than 
our own.
  The minimal cost of the microenterprise program yield great benefits 
and

[[Page 6289]]

have a tremendous long-term impact on the future economic and social 
development of many nations, specifically those in Central America.
  I would like to give, if I may, a couple of individuals cases that I 
personally have seen, first that occurred in El Salvador maybe 10 or 12 
years ago. They took us to a tailor shop where this gentleman 
volunteered to give me a three-piece suit, cut to my standard style and 
size and everything, for $100. I don't know how the rest of the Members 
feel, but this was unbelievable.
  I found out that this gentleman in his time of need found out that he 
could get a sewing machine for $100 that he borrowed from the 
microenterprise. With that $100 and a pair of scissors, he started 
producing clothes. At the time that I saw him there, he had four sewing 
machines and the whole operation, and his $100 now had become $3,000 
that he was able to invest. That was in El Salvador.
  Several years later when we were in Nicaragua we asked, why in the 
world don't microenterprises come to Nicaragua? In this particular case 
they took us to a shopping area of downtown Managua and showed us a 
young lady there who had borrowed $200 to start off with. She put 
vegetables and flowers and seeds and so forth for sale. After 3 years 
in that small investment of about $200, I asked her what her inventory 
was. It was a little grocery store by then. She had $7,000 worth of 
groceries there.
  All of this was done by small loans that were immediately paid back. 
Their loan qualities were unbelievable the way they paid it back, just 
as the statistics have already shown. I would just like to recommend 
highly that this is a wonderful program and we ought to do something 
about it.
  In many impoverished countries there are no secure financial 
institutions where people can apply for loans, no training facilities 
to teach people a trade, and no encouraging signs of growth and 
prosperity. The microenterprise programs make these resources 
available, and allow people who once had no hope of sustaining a 
livable wage, it gives them a real chance to become self-sufficient.
  As the U.S. continues to promote assistance, as opposed to handouts, 
I think it is important for us to applaud programs that grant an 
opportunity for growth. I encourage all my colleagues to vote in favor 
of this legislation, which has proven to benefit the international 
community that needs our help most, the poorest of the poor.
  Please support the Microenterprise Self-Reliance Act.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
North Carolina (Mrs. Clayton).
  Mrs. CLAYTON. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentlewoman from California 
for yielding time to me.
  Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to join with my colleagues in the spirit 
of bipartisanship to support the goals and the objective of 
microenterprises in developing countries.
  Many of the world's poorest workers are self-employed. These 
entrepreneurs are trapped in poverty because they cannot obtain credit 
at a reasonable rate that will allow them to build their assets and 
expand their businesses.
  The global credit program for microenterprises provides funds that 
will increase the flow of credit from the formal financial sector to 
the micro entrepreneurs, with a view to improving their productivity, 
income, and employment level.
  Over the past years we have learned firsthand the dramatic impact 
that microenterprise has had on the lives of millions of the world's 
poorest families, enabling many of them to pull themselves out of 
poverty. Our support for microenterprise needs to be strengthened, and 
our resolve and commitment to ensure that we meet the goals and 
objectives of microenterprise fortified.
  Two examples were shared recently by RESULTS with my office. In 
Uganda a woman borrowed money to invest in her brick-making company. 
She was producing 1,000 bricks, and she borrowed money, and she has now 
increased it to 5,000 bricks. She uses the money to school her 
children, to allow them to have a better opportunity than herself.
  The second example is in El Salvador, a woman borrowed $57 to 
increase her bread-making business. She has been so successful she has 
now bought out her supplier.
  These examples are indeed proof that this program is a success, not 
only for the people it is intended for, but also their ability to pay 
back the loans exceeds that in the private sector.
  We must recommit ourselves to ensuring that 100 million of the 
world's poorest families are afforded the opportunity that many of us 
take for granted, the opportunity to direct and shape our future by 
investing our skills, talents, and energy into building, sustaining, 
and expanding small businesses.
  H.R. 1143 grants that opportunity and assurance by authorizing grant 
assistance of $152 million in the fiscal year 2000, $167 million in 
fiscal year 2001, to further the development of microenterprise in 
developing countries. This is a modest investment that can have a 
powerful impact on the eradication of poverty.
  Microcredit is not charity, nor is it big government gone astray, but 
rather, microcredit is a sound and wise investment that deserves 
priority and protection. Without a focused effort to empower 
individuals in the poorest regions of the world, dire poverty will 
continue to plague our global community, draining our capital 
resources, sapping our political will, and destroying countless human 
lives worldwide.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this desperately needed 
legislation.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Ballenger) for the 
purposes of a colloquy.
  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Chairman, Section 4(b)5 of the bill states that 
``Assistance provided under this subsection may only be used to support 
microenterprise programs and may not be used to support programs not 
directly related to the purposes described in paragraph (1).''
  I would ask the gentleman from New Jersey (Chairman Smith), do I 
understand correctly that this language prohibits requirements not 
directly related to the enterprise for which credit is extended from 
being imposed on a microcredit beneficiary as a condition on their 
eligibility for assistance?
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, if the gentleman will yield, I 
would say to the gentleman that this is correct.
  This colloquy, for the purposes of the record and for my colleagues, 
has been worked out with the gentleman from New York (Chairman Gilman) 
and with his full concurrence.
  The answer to the question is, that is correct.
  Mr. BALLENGER. Requirements not directly related to the 
microenterprise cannot be considered as a factor affecting the amount 
or terms of the assistance that microcredit applicants are eligible to 
receive?
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Yes, that is correct. Funds provided by this 
bill may be used only to support microenterprise programs. A 
requirement that a microcredit applicant fulfill some unrelated 
precondition would constitute support for something other than 
microenterprise programs. Thus, such requirements are expressly 
prohibited by section 4(b)5.
  Mr. BALLENGER. Thus, to take an extreme example, a program funded by 
this bill could not require that an applicant be sterilized before she 
is eligible for microenterprise assistance?
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Yes. Section 4(b)5 would prohibit funding of 
any program that attempted to impose such a condition.
  Mr. BALLENGER. I thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I yield 4 minutes to the 
gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bereuter), the vice chairman of the 
Committee and the chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific.

                              {time}  1230

  Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the legislation. I

[[Page 6290]]

thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for yielding me this 
time.
  I am an original cosponsor and strong supporter of this bill. This 
Member first became familiar with the microenterprise concept during 
the 99th Congress. At that time, an organization known by its acronym 
of FINCA, F-I-N-C-A, worked closely with poverty stricken areas of 
Latin America and South America. The concept of microenterprises, I 
think had not had much visibility at all on Capitol Hill or in America 
until we learned about FINCA's good work.
  Having since visited numerous developing countries while serving on 
the Committee on International Relations, this Member can testify to 
the utter despair and grinding poverty that is all too commonplace 
throughout so much of the world and to the hope which microenterprise 
programs can provide.
  Much of the grinding poverty could be redressed by just a few 
dollars' worth of tools and raw materials. In countries where the 
average wage may be no more than 50 cents a day, as little as $10 can 
provide someone with the reed to make straw mats or leather for shoes. 
Just a few dollars can stock a peddler's cart and allow him or her to 
rise above helpless poverty.
  Microenterprise initiatives will not make anyone rich, but it will 
pay for tuition for a child's basic education or the cost of a concrete 
surface to replace an old dirt floor, or a pump where the water is not 
tainted. Importantly, microenterprise can provide these small luxuries, 
or I would say basic elements of life, but they come only to those who 
are willing to combine these small loans with hard work.
  Recipients of these loans certainly do work hard. It is reported that 
recipients repay the principal within the first month in many cases, 
and 95 to 98 percent of recipients repay the loans on time. Indeed, 
that repayment rate is incredibly good as compared to commercial banks' 
repayments. It also serves, I think, as a strong testament to 
recipients' receptivity to these programs.
  The legislation before this body today gives an important boost to 
existing microenterprise programs like the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, 
where microenterprise has had great positive effects for a whole 
generation of women; or BancoSol, which now has the largest number of 
clients of any financial institution in Bolivia. This legislation will 
ensure their survival.
  H.R. 1143 sets forth the guidelines to ensure that the needs of the 
poorest of the poor are addressed. One-half of all microenterprise 
resources are devoted to loans of $300 or less.
  Importantly, the legislation establishes a facility specifically 
devoted to countries devastated by war or natural disasters. This is a 
particularly important provision, Mr. Chairman. It means all is not 
lost when torrential flooding destroys an entire economy, as was the 
case last year in Bangladesh. It means that people in war-torn regions 
can return home and try to start life anew, as has been the case in 
Rwanda and Cambodia.
  Mr. Chairman, H.R. 1143 speaks to the best part of our collective 
conscience. Through this legislation, the U.S. is offering hope to 
those who have no hope, a helping hand to those who want to make for 
themselves a better life.
  This Member congratulates the author of this initiative, the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman), the chairman of the Committee on 
International Relations. It is largely through his efforts that 
microenterprise has become such an important part of our foreign 
assistance efforts.
  This Member would also thank the distinguished gentleman from 
Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson), the ranking Democrat on the committee, for 
his constructive efforts to move this legislation forward.
  I thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for yielding me 
this time and for his support of the legislation.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
Michigan (Ms. Kilpatrick).
  Ms. KILPATRICK. Mr. Chairman, first, to the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Lee), sitting in for the gentleman from Connecticut 
(Mr. Gejdenson), I thank her so much for yielding me the time. I thank 
the gentleman from New York (Chairman Gilman) as well as the gentleman 
from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson), our ranking member, and the entire 
committee for bringing to us such an important bill.
  As has been mentioned, whether in Bangladesh, India, Africa, or some 
other country of the world, including the United States, microcredit, 
the assistance to small businesses, primarily women I might add, is the 
difference between success and failure in so many children's lives.
  As has been said earlier, the World Bank reports that 1.2 billion 
people in the world exist on less than $1 a day. That is 20 percent of 
the world's population exist on less than $1 per day.
  This microenterprise legislation provides for the children of these 
families hope for the future. It provides a way where their parents, in 
many cases women, can have their own businesses, can earn their own 
fees and dollars and then send their children to school to receive an 
adequate education.
  I commend the subcommittee, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman), 
the chairman of the Committee on International Relations, and all of 
those who brought this bill to the floor.
  I recently returned from overseas and had another first-hand look at 
some very successful microenterprise operations. They are in fact 
working. They are the difference between success and failure, not only 
in the woman's life, who in many cases is the breadwinner, is the 
nurturer of the family, is the person that instills strength and self-
confidence in children, that one can be what one wants to be.
  It has been reported that microenterprise, also the loans are repaid 
at a much higher rate than traditional lending practices; that, not 
only are the businesses successful, but the payback in large measure 
has been paid back.
  So, Mr. Chairman, let us move H.R. 1143 out of this Chamber and to 
the signature of the President. It is the difference between success 
and failure. Microenterprising is a tool not only used in this country 
but in the poorest of the poor countries of the world to say that this 
is a wonderful world. When we work together, we can save many 
children's lives and offer them hope for the future.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Moran).
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I thank the very distinguished 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) for yielding me this time and for 
leading the debate on our side of the aisle today and for her support 
for this program.
  This is a neat, wonderful concept, and it is something that we can 
agree on, which also says a lot as well. We ought to be looking for 
more of these ideas.
  It is a testament to the strength of the human spirit, this program. 
It has taught a couple of things. One is that poor people would much 
rather that we give them loans than grants, that we have confidence in 
their ability to pay money back, that all they really need is a little 
seed money to get started.
  The second thing it teaches us is that the most underused economic 
resource in this world are the women of the world who have always been 
doing most of the work but very seldom have they ever had any real 
control, particularly economic control, over their lives.
  So the programs that work are the ones that go out and find the women 
in the villages that know what is going on and have the fortitude and 
the determination to provide for their families and give them the 
resources. Boy, the ideas that they come up with and the kind of effort 
that they put into these little microenterprise efforts, they are just 
heartwarming.
  It should be known also that these microenterprise banks charge a lot 
of money in interest, a lot of them, more interest than we would want 
to pay. Yet, invariably, the vast majority of these loans get paid off. 
It is just unbelievable what people can do with just a

[[Page 6291]]

little seed money if given the confidence and the resources.
  So I want to thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) and the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Nebraska 
(Mr. Bereuter) and all the others on the Republican side and certainly 
the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson), our ranking member, and 
the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), and all of the members of 
the committee.
  We have got a good thing going here. It costs us very little money. 
The only people that seem to have some reluctance about this is the 
White House. I read their statement of administration policy, and I 
cannot really figure out what they are trying to say and what their 
objection would be. But I am sorry that they do not get fully behind 
this, because they have done a lot to make microenterprise programs 
work. They should have endorsed this piece of legislation. But I know 
that they are going to fully fund it, and they are going to get behind 
it, particularly USAID, and make it work.
  We cannot always control the situations, and we have had some real 
catastrophes that have prevented people in Third World countries from 
being able to pay back their loans. Bangladesh comes to mind. So we 
need some provision to make sure that money is available. This provides 
that. It ensures that there is going to be this revolving fund 
available.
  This is the right way to do it. We are institutionalizing it. This is 
going to get a unanimous vote, I hope, and it deserves one. The people 
of the Third World, to take advantage of this, deserve the little seed 
money that this provides to them.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I would like to thank the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran) for his 
kind remarks and also for his acknowledgment and recognition of the 
competence and the tenacity and the commitment of women to economic 
development and job creation.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, if the gentlewoman will yield 
for just a moment, we men have always known that; it is just seldom 
that we ever admitted it.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Virginia for coming 
out front and talking about it publicly.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to join me in 
supporting H.R. 1143, the Microenterprise for Self-Reliance Act of 
1999. I support this bill because I have witnessed first-hand the 
uplifting effects of microcredit on the economic and humanitarian 
conditions of struggling nations around the world. I have closely 
monitored its enormously positive influence on women and ethnic 
minorities, those most likely to face discrimination in creating small 
businesses and establishing social support networks in their 
communities. H.R. 1143 would allow these essential developments to 
continue and expand, aiding the stability of new democracies and 
enabling all citizens a stake in their future directions.
  The microcredit program, more than any other government initiative, 
is founded on the free market ideals central to America's greatness. By 
providing small amounts of start-up capital to aspiring entrepreneurs, 
productive businesses can be established which, in a collective manner, 
change society for the better. For example, when a woman in a small 
African nation borrows a few dollars to set up a crafts shop, she does 
far more than better her family's financial situation. She may create 
employment opportunities for others in her small community, she may 
held to break generations of poverty in her town, she may generate 
income that will allow the creation of even more commerce, she may 
break down age-old stereotypes of women's social roles, and she may 
make it possible for untold numbers of women to realize the 
opportunities provided to her by the blessing of microcredit.
  As the distinguished Administrator of the U.S. Agency for 
International Development (USAID), J. Brian Atwood, explained: 
``Microenterprise is one of our most effective tools to foster bottom-
up growth and to give women an opportunity to make a place for 
themselves in business and in their communities.'' For only a minimal 
investment--few loans exceed $300, and the return rate is nearly 100 
percent--we can peacefully alter centuries of history, one entrepreneur 
at a time.
  H.R. 1143 will strengthen this much-needed program by authorizing 
increased funds ($152 million in FY 2000 and $167 million in FY 2001) 
and ensuring that at least 50 percent of microenterprise resources be 
used for poverty lending to the neediest participants in Third World 
economies. Furthermore, H.R. 1143 would permanently establish two new 
provisions in law to govern grants and loans, and it would create a 
loan facility inside USAID to help U.S.-sponsored microfinance 
institutions survive natural disasters, civil wars, and national 
financial crises.
  I applaud these reforms, and I commend International Relations 
Committee Chairman Benjamin A. Gilman and Ranking Member Sam Gejdenson 
for their hard work in working out the provisions of this legislation.
  Mr. Chairman, I would also like to recognize the extraordinary 
commitment of First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton to the microenterprise 
program. Since the earliest days of the Clinton Presidency, Mrs. 
Clinton has used her exceptional brilliance and influence to promote 
this initiative around the world. Long before other opinion leaders 
understood the importance of targeted microcredit investments, she was 
proclaiming the benefits of this program for women and families in a 
host of nations. I would also like to note the impressive contributions 
of Administrator Atwood in implementing this essential component of our 
foreign policy.
  Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1143.
  Mr. LUTHER. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 1143, the 
Microenterprise for Self-Reliance Act of 1999. Microcredit is the 
process of providing small loans to very poor people at commercial 
interest rates for the startup or expansion of small business ventures. 
It has been successful in promoting economic growth and ending the 
worst aspects of poverty in some of the most destitute places in the 
world.
  Unfortunately, despite its proven track record, microcredit has not 
been utilized to its full potential. Funding for microcredit within the 
U.S. Agency for International Development has not kept pace with the 
growing capacity to lend. Despite the fact that in 1994 USAID set the 
goal of directing half of overall microenterprise funds to programs 
serving the poorest people in loans of $300 or less by the end of 1996, 
only about 41 percent of these funds are currently reaching this target 
population.
  The Microenterprise for Self-Reliance Act of 1999 calls for $152 
million in fiscal year 2000 and $167 million in fiscal year 2001 and 
designates half of all microenterprise funds as loans of $300 or less 
for the neediest people in the world. Along with helping the world's 
poorest people, this legislation increases work skills and improves the 
economies of the developing nations where microcredit initiatives are 
in place. Currently, approximately 1.2 billion people--one fifth of the 
world population--live in extreme poverty. As long as poverty continues 
to plague so many millions, there will be no lasting peace or stability 
in our world.
  Microcredit is one of the most cost-effective and successful ways to 
combat poverty and help achieve peace. Therefore, I urge my colleagues 
to vote for H.R. 1143.
  Mr. PORTER. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of this 
legislation. The concept of microlending has existed for over two 
decades, created by Muhammed Yunus through the Grameen Bank in 
Bangladesh. This concept has enjoyed incredible success and has 
improved the lives of millions of people, especially women. The Grameen 
Bank has inspired microlending programs in fifty-six other countries 
and has been copied by 5,000 international institutions. In fact, this 
system has even been adopted by the Women's Self-Employment Project in 
Chicago to successfully wean unwed mothers off of welfare.
  I am very pleased that the U.S. Congress is not only condoning U.S. 
participation in the microcredit system but expanding and improving our 
involvement in these programs with this legislation. I have seen the 
incredible impact that a small loan can have on a single family in the 
developing world. A short-term loan of $75 used to be unaccessible for 
most people in these countries. However, through the Grameen Bank and 
bilateral microcredit programs, these loans are now available and 
becoming more widespread. The reason for this success and expansion is 
due to the unparalleled rate of repayment. In 1997, the Grameen Bank 
had a 94 percent repayment rate.
  Unfortunately, microcredit programs have been drastically impacted by 
the recent natural disasters and financial crises in various regions of 
the world. However, these events should not be interpreted as failures 
in microcredit programs, but as opportunities for expanding the 
program. Farmers in Nicaragua are in desperate need of a few dollars to 
replant their crops. Weavers in Thailand have seen their currency 
plummet and just need a

[[Page 6292]]

small amount of investment to keep their fledgling businesses stay 
afloat. While Grameen Bank loan repayment rates plunged to 68 percent 
immediately after the floods in Bangladesh last year, these rates 
rebounded to 88 percent in just a few months. H.R. 1143 will expand 
these credit programs and provided the cushion necessary to enable the 
financial institutions and other organizations operating these 
microcredit programs to help those that are in the most desperate need. 
This legislation provides some of the important infrastructure programs 
necessary for many countries struggling from recent crises to move from 
disaster assistance to economic development.
  Mrs. ROUKEMA. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of H.R. 1143, the 
``Microenterprise for Self-Reliance Act of 1999.'' H.R. 1143 would 
provide vital assistance in the form of credit and other financial 
services to microentrepreneur programs as part of a global approach to 
aiding the world's poorest individuals.
  Many people in this world rely on self-employment as a necessary 
means for their livelihood. In this regard, the importance of the role 
of microentrepreneurs in our global economy cannot be overlooked. The 
general philosophy of the microenterprise industry is to bring new 
sources of income to segments of the population where job opportunities 
are low by providing small amounts of credit to those whom have not had 
access to commercial credit. Microfinance programs are critical to the 
fight against hunger and poverty. Such programs are a leveraging tool 
for decreasing dependence on foreign assistance. H.R. 1143 authorizes 
grants to support microlending programs in the amount of $152 million 
for FY 2000 and $167 million for FY 2001. Fifty percent of these funds 
must be used for loans of $300 or less.
  Last year, the Financial Times reported that ``though Latin American 
has moved furthest towards the commercialization of microfinance, it is 
also commonplace in other developing countries, and the World Bank 
estimates that more than $7 billion of microcredit is outstanding.''
  A report released by the U.N. last year acknowledges the success of 
microcredit in Latin America and Asia. However, the report states that 
``it is not clear if the extent to which microcredit has spread, or can 
potentially spread, can make a major dent in global poverty.'' The 
report based this conclusion on the assertion that ``the poorest of the 
poor'' are usually ``not in a position to undertake an economic 
activity partly because they lack business skills and even the 
motivation for business.'' While I support H.R. 1143, I make this point 
for the purpose of impressing upon this Congress the importance of 
ensuring that the extension of funds to poor microentrepreneurs is in 
reality contributing to the battle against poverty and hunger.
  Innovative ways of bringing economic vitalization to areas of the 
world that sorely lack any financial sustainability should be a 
priority for any global financial architecture. H.R. 1143 contributes 
to that strategy and I urge its passage.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Chairman, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The CHAIRMAN. All time for general debate has expired.
  Pursuant to the rule, the bill shall be considered under the 5-minute 
rule by section, and each section shall be considered read.
  During consideration of the bill for amendment, the Chair may accord 
priority in recognition to a Member offering an amendment that he has 
printed in the designated place in the Congressional Record. Those 
amendments will be considered read.
  The Chairman of the Committee of the Whole may postpone a request for 
a recorded vote on any amendment and may reduce to a minimum of 5 
minutes the time for voting on any postponed question that immediately 
follows another vote, provided that the time for voting on the first 
question shall be a minimum of 15 minutes.
  The Clerk will designate section 1.
  The text of section 1 is as follows:
       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 ``Microenterprise for Self-
     Reliance Act of 1999''.

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that 
the remainder of the bill be printed in the Record, and open to 
amendment at any point.
  The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from 
New Jersey?
  There was no objection.
  The text of the remainder of the bill is as follows:

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS OF POLICY.

       The Congress makes the following findings and declarations:
       (1) According to the World Bank, more than 1,200,000,000 
     people in the developing world, or one-fifth of the world's 
     population, subsist on less than $1 a day.
       (2) Over 32,000 of their children die each day from largely 
     preventable malnutrition and disease.
       (3)(A) Women in poverty generally have larger work loads 
     and less access to educational and economic opportunities 
     than their male counterparts.
       (B) Directly aiding the poorest of the poor, especially 
     women, in the developing world has a positive effect not only 
     on family incomes, but also on child nutrition, health and 
     education, as women in particular reinvest income in their 
     families.
       (4)(A) The poor in the developing world, particularly 
     women, generally lack stable employment and social safety 
     nets.
       (B) Many turn to self-employment to generate a substantial 
     portion of their livelihood. In Africa, over 80 percent of 
     employment is generated in the informal sector of the self-
     employed poor.
       (C) These poor entrepreneurs are often trapped in poverty 
     because they cannot obtain credit at reasonable rates to 
     build their asset base or expand their otherwise viable self-
     employment activities.
       (D) Many of the poor are forced to pay interest rates as 
     high as 10 percent per day to money lenders.
       (5)(A) The poor are able to expand their incomes and their 
     businesses dramatically when they can access loans at 
     reasonable interest rates.
       (B) Through the development of self-sustaining microfinance 
     programs, poor people themselves can lead the fight against 
     hunger and poverty.
       (6)(A) On February 2-4, 1997, a global Microcredit Summit 
     was held in Washington, District of Columbia, to launch a 
     plan to expand access to credit for self-employment and other 
     financial and business services to 100,000,000 of the world's 
     poorest families, especially the women of those families, by 
     2005. While this scale of outreach may not be achievable in 
     this short timeframe, the realization of this goal could 
     dramatically alter the face of global poverty.
       (B) With an average family size of five, achieving this 
     goal will mean that the benefits of microfinance will thereby 
     reach nearly half of the world's more than 1,000,000,000 
     absolute poor people.
       (7)(A) Nongovernmental organizations, such as those that 
     comprise the Microenterprise Coalition (such as the Grameen 
     Bank (Bangladesh,) K-REP (Kenya), and networks such as Accion 
     International, the Foundation for International Community 
     Assistance (FINCA), and the credit union movement) are 
     successful in lending directly to the very poor.
       (B) Microfinance institutions such as BRAC (Bangladesh), 
     BancoSol (Bolivia), SEWA Bank (India), and ACEP (Senegal) are 
     regulated financial institutions that can raise funds 
     directly from the local and international capital markets.
       (8)(A) Microenterprise institutions not only reduce 
     poverty, but also reduce the dependency on foreign 
     assistance.
       (B) Interest income on the credit portfolio is used to pay 
     recurring institutional costs, assuring the long-term 
     sustainability of development assistance.
       (9) Microfinance institutions leverage foreign assistance 
     resources because loans are recycled, generating new benefits 
     to program participants.
       (10)(A) The development of sustainable microfinance 
     institutions that provide credit and training, and mobilize 
     domestic savings, are critical components to a global 
     strategy of poverty reduction and broad-based economic 
     development.
       (B) In the efforts of the United States to lead the 
     development of a new global financial architecture, 
     microenterprise should play a vital role. The recent shocks 
     to international financial markets demonstrate how the 
     financial sector can shape the destiny of nations. 
     Microfinance can serve as a powerful tool for building a more 
     inclusive financial sector which serves the broad majority of 
     the world's population including the very poor and women and 
     thus generate more social stability and prosperity.
       (C) Over the last two decades, the United States has been a 
     global leader in promoting the global microenterprise sector, 
     primarily through its development assistance programs at the 
     United States Agency for International Development. 
     Additionally, the United States Department of the Treasury 
     and the Department of State have used their authority to 
     promote microenterprise in the development programs of 
     international financial institutions and the United Nations.
       (11)(A) In 1994, the United States Agency for International 
     Development launched the ``Microenterprise Initiative'' in 
     partnership with the Congress.
       (B) The initiative committed to expanding funding for the 
     microenterprise programs of

[[Page 6293]]

     the Agency, and set a goal that, by the end of fiscal year 
     1996, half of all microenterprise resources would support 
     programs and institutions that provide credit to the poorest, 
     with loans under $300.
       (C) In order to achieve the goal of the microcredit summit, 
     increased investment in microcredit institutions serving the 
     poorest will be critical.
       (12) Providing the United States share of the global 
     investment needed to achieve the goal of the microcredit 
     summit will require only a small increase in United States 
     funding for international microcredit programs, with an 
     increased focus on institutions serving the poorest.
       (13)(A) In order to reach tens of millions of the poorest 
     with microcredit, it is crucial to expand and replicate 
     successful microcredit institutions.
       (B) These institutions need assistance in developing their 
     institutional capacity to expand their services and tap 
     commercial sources of capital.
       (14) Nongovernmental organizations have demonstrated 
     competence in developing networks of local microfinance 
     institutions and other assistance delivery mechanisms so that 
     they reach large numbers of the very poor, and achieve 
     financial sustainability.
       (15) Recognizing that the United States Agency for 
     International Development has developed very effective 
     partnerships with nongovernmental organizations, and that the 
     Agency will have fewer missions to carry out its work, the 
     Agency should place priority on investing in those 
     nongovernmental network institutions that meet performance 
     criteria through the central funding mechanisms of the 
     Agency.
       (16) By expanding and replicating successful microcredit 
     institutions, it should be possible to create a global 
     infrastructure to provide financial services to the world's 
     poorest families.
       (17)(A) The United States can provide leadership to other 
     bilateral and multilateral development agencies as such 
     agencies expand their support to the microenterprise sector.
       (B) The United States should seek to improve coordination 
     among G-7 countries in the support of the microenterprise 
     sector in order to leverage the investment of the United 
     States with that of other donor nations.
       (18) Through increased support for microenterprise, 
     especially credit for the poorest, the United States can 
     continue to play a leadership role in the global effort to 
     expand financial services and opportunity to 100,000,000 of 
     the poorest families on the planet.

     SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

       The purposes of this Act are--
       (1) to make microenterprise development an important 
     element of United States foreign economic policy and 
     assistance;
       (2) to provide for the continuation and expansion of the 
     commitment of the United States Agency for International 
     Development to the development of microenterprise 
     institutions as outlined in its 1994 Microenterprise 
     Initiative;
       (3) to support and develop the capacity of United States 
     and indigenous nongovernmental organization intermediaries to 
     provide credit, savings, training and technical services to 
     microentrepreneurs;
       (4) to increase the amount of assistance devoted to credit 
     activities designed to reach the poorest sector in developing 
     countries, and to improve the access of the poorest, 
     particularly women, to microenterprise credit in developing 
     countries; and
       (5) to encourage the United States Agency for International 
     Development to coordinate microfinance policy, in 
     consultation with the Department of the Treasury and the 
     Department of State, and to provide global leadership in 
     promoting microenterprise for the poorest among bilateral and 
     multilateral donors.

     SEC. 4. MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT GRANT ASSISTANCE.

       Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating the second section 129 (as added by 
     section 4 of the Torture Victims Relief Act of 1998 (Public 
     Law 105-320)) as section 130; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following new section:

     ``SEC. 131. MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT GRANT ASSISTANCE.

       ``(a) Findings and Policy.--The Congress finds and declares 
     that--
       ``(1) the development of microenterprise is a vital factor 
     in the stable growth of developing countries and in the 
     development of free, open, and equitable international 
     economic systems;
       ``(2) it is therefore in the best interest of the United 
     States to assist the development of microenterprises in 
     developing countries; and
       ``(3) the support of microenterprise can be served by 
     programs providing credit, savings, training, and technical 
     assistance.
       ``(b) Authorization.--(1) In carrying out this part, the 
     President is authorized to provide grant assistance for 
     programs to increase the availability of credit and other 
     services to microenterprises lacking full access to capital 
     and training through--
       ``(A) grants to microfinance institutions for the purpose 
     of expanding the availability of credit, savings, and other 
     financial services to microentrepreneurs;
       ``(B) training, technical assistance, and other support for 
     microenterprises to enable them to make better use of credit, 
     to better manage their enterprises, and to increase their 
     income and build their assets;
       ``(C) capacity building for microfinance institutions in 
     order to enable them to better meet the credit and training 
     needs of microentrepreneurs; and
       ``(D) policy and regulatory programs at the country level 
     that improve the environment for microfinance institutions 
     that serve the poor and very poor.
       ``(2) Assistance authorized under paragraph (1) shall be 
     provided through organizations that have a capacity to 
     develop and implement microenterprise programs, including 
     particularly--
       ``(A) United States and indigenous private and voluntary 
     organizations;
       ``(B) United States and indigenous credit unions and 
     cooperative organizations;
       ``(C) other indigenous governmental and nongovernmental 
     organizations; or
       ``(D) business development services, including indigenous 
     craft programs.
       ``(3) In carrying out sustainable poverty-focused programs 
     under paragraph (1), 50 percent of all microenterprise 
     resources shall be used for direct support of programs under 
     this subsection through practitioner institutions that 
     provide credit and other financial services to the poorest 
     with loans of $300 or less in 1995 United States dollars and 
     can cover their costs of credit programs with revenue from 
     lending activities or that demonstrate the capacity to do so 
     in a reasonable time period.
       ``(4) The President should continue support for central 
     mechanisms and missions that--
       ``(A) provide technical support for field missions;
       ``(B) strengthen the institutional development of the 
     intermediary organizations described in paragraph (2);
       ``(C) share information relating to the provision of 
     assistance authorized under paragraph (1) between such field 
     missions and intermediary organizations; and
       ``(D) support the development of nonprofit global 
     microfinance networks, including credit union systems, that--
       ``(i) are able to deliver very small loans through a vast 
     grassroots infrastructure based on market principles; and
       ``(ii) act as wholesale intermediaries providing a range of 
     services to microfinance retail institutions, including 
     financing, technical assistance, capacity building and safety 
     and soundness accreditation.
       ``(5) Assistance provided under this subsection may only be 
     used to support microenterprise programs and may not be used 
     to support programs not directly related to the purposes 
     described in paragraph (1).
       ``(c) Monitoring System.--In order to maximize the 
     sustainable development impact of the assistance authorized 
     under subsection (a)(1), the Administrator of the United 
     States Agency for International Development shall establish a 
     monitoring system that--
       ``(1) establishes performance goals for such assistance and 
     expresses such goals in an objective and quantifiable form, 
     to the extent feasible;
       ``(2) establishes performance indicators to be used in 
     measuring or assessing the achievement of the goals and 
     objectives of such assistance;
       ``(3) provides a basis for recommendations for adjustments 
     to such assistance to enhance the sustainable development 
     impact of such assistance, particularly the impact of such 
     assistance on the very poor, particularly poor women; and
       ``(4) provides a basis for recommendations for adjustments 
     to measures for reaching the poorest of the poor, including 
     proposed legislation containing amendments to improve 
     paragraph (3).
       ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--
       ``(1) In general.--(A) There are authorized to be 
     appropriated $152,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and 
     $167,000,000 for fiscal year 2001 to carry out this section.
       ``(B) Amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization of 
     appropriations under subparagraph (A) are authorized to 
     remain available until expended.
       ``(2) Rule of construction.--Amounts authorized to be 
     appropriated under paragraph (1) are in addition to amounts 
     otherwise available to carry out this section.''.

     SEC. 5. MICRO- AND SMALL ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT CREDITS.

       Section 108 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 
     U.S.C. 2151f) is amended to read as follows:

     ``SEC. 108. MICRO- AND SMALL ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT CREDITS.

       ``(a) Findings and Policy.--The Congress finds and declares 
     that--
       ``(1) the development of micro- and small enterprises are a 
     vital factor in the stable growth of developing countries and 
     in the development and stability of a free, open, and 
     equitable international economic system; and
       ``(2) it is, therefore, in the best interests of the United 
     States to assist the development of the enterprises of the 
     poor in developing countries and to engage the United States 
     private sector in that process.

[[Page 6294]]

       ``(b) Program.--To carry out the policy set forth in 
     subsection (a), the President is authorized to provide 
     assistance to increase the availability of credit to micro- 
     and small enterprises lacking full access to credit, 
     including through--
       ``(1) loans and guarantees to credit institutions for the 
     purpose of expanding the availability of credit to micro- and 
     small enterprises;
       ``(2) training programs for lenders in order to enable them 
     to better meet the credit needs of microentrepreneurs; and
       ``(3) training programs for microentrepreneurs in order to 
     enable them to make better use of credit and to better manage 
     their enterprises.
       ``(c) Eligibility Criteria.--The Administrator of the 
     United States Agency for International Development shall 
     establish criteria for determining which entities described 
     in subsection (b) are eligible to carry out activities, with 
     respect to micro- and small enterprises, assisted under this 
     section. Such criteria may include the following:
       ``(1) The extent to which the recipients of credit from the 
     entity do not have access to the local formal financial 
     sector.
       ``(2) The extent to which the recipients of credit from the 
     entity are among the poorest people in the country.
       ``(3) The extent to which the entity is oriented toward 
     working directly with poor women.
       ``(4) The extent to which the entity recovers its cost of 
     lending to the poor.
       ``(5) The extent to which the entity implements a plan to 
     become financially sustainable.
       ``(d) Additional Requirement.--Assistance provided under 
     this section may only be used to support micro- and small 
     enterprise programs and may not be used to support programs 
     not directly related to the purposes described in subsection 
     (b).
       ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--
       ``(1) In general.--(A) There are authorized to be 
     appropriated $1,500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2000 and 
     2001 to carry out this section.
       ``(B) Amounts authorized to be appropriated under 
     subparagraph (A) shall be made available for the subsidy 
     cost, as defined in section 502(5) of the Federal Credit 
     Reform Act of 1990, for activities under this section.
       ``(2) Administrative expenses.--There are authorized to be 
     appropriated $500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2000 and 
     2001 for the cost of administrative expenses in carrying out 
     this section.
       ``(3) Rule of construction.--Amounts authorized to be 
     appropriated under this subsection are in addition to amounts 
     otherwise available to carry out this section.''.

     SEC. 6. MICROFINANCE LOAN FACILITY.

       Chapter 1 of part 1 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.), as amended by this Act, is further 
     amended by adding the following new section:

     ``SEC. 132. UNITED STATES MICROFINANCE LOAN FACILITY.

       ``(a) Establishment.--The Administrator of the United 
     States Agency for International Development is authorized to 
     establish a United States Microfinance Loan Facility 
     (hereinafter in this section referred to as the `Facility') 
     to pool and manage the risk from natural disasters, war or 
     civil conflict, national financial crisis, or short-term 
     financial movements that threaten the long-term development 
     of United States-supported microfinance institutions.
       ``(b) Supervisory Board of the Facility.--(1) The Facility 
     shall be supervised by a board composed of the following 
     representatives appointed by the President not later than 180 
     days after the date of the enactment of Microenterprise for 
     Self-Reliance Act of 1999:
       ``(A) 1 representative from the Department of the Treasury.
       ``(B) 1 representative from the Department of State.
       ``(C) 1 representative from the United States Agency for 
     International Development.
       ``(D)(i) 2 United States citizens from United States 
     nongovernmental organizations that operate United States-
     sponsored microfinance activities.
       ``(ii) Individuals described in clause (i) shall be 
     appointed for a term of 2 years.
       ``(2) The Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development or his designee shall serve as 
     Chairman and an additional voting member of the board.
       ``(c) Disbursements.--(1) The board shall make 
     disbursements from the Facility to United States-sponsored 
     microfinance institutions to prevent the bankruptcy of such 
     institutions caused by (A) natural disasters, (B) national 
     wars or civil conflict, and (C) national financial crisis or 
     other short term financial movements that threaten the long-
     term development of United States-supported microfinance 
     institutions. Such disbursements shall be made as 
     concessional loans that are repaid maintaining the real value 
     of the loan to microfinance institutions that demonstrate the 
     capacity to resume self-sustained operations within a 
     reasonable time period. The Facility shall provide for loan 
     losses with each loan disbursed.
       ``(2) During each of the fiscal years 2001 and 2002, funds 
     may not be made available from the Facility until 15 days 
     after notification of the availability has been provided to 
     the congressional committees specified in section 634A of 
     this Act in accordance with the procedures applicable to 
     reprogramming notifications under that section.
       ``(d) Report.--Not later than 60 days after the date on 
     which the last representative to the board is appointed 
     pursuant to subsection (b), the chairman of the board shall 
     prepare and submit to the appropriate congressional 
     committees a report on the policies, rules, and regulations 
     of the Facility.
       ``(e) Funding.--(1) Not more than $5,000,000 of amounts 
     made available to carry out sections 103 through 106 of this 
     Act for each of the fiscal years 2000 and 2001 may be made 
     available to carry out this section for each such fiscal 
     year.
       ``(2) Amounts made available under paragraph (1) are in 
     addition to amounts available under other provisions of law 
     to carry out this section.
       ``(f) Definitions.--In this section:
       ``(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     `appropriate congressional committees' means the Committee on 
     International Relations of the House of Representatives and 
     the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate.
       ``(2) United states-supported microfinance institution.--
     The term `United States-supported microfinance institution' 
     means a financial intermediary that has received funds made 
     available under this Act for fiscal year 1980 and each 
     subsequent fiscal year.''.

     SEC. 7. REPORT RELATING TO FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF MICROFINANCE 
                   INSTITUTIONS.

       (a) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the President, in consultation with 
     the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development, the Secretary of State, and the 
     Secretary of the Treasury, shall prepare and transmit to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a report on the most 
     cost-effective methods for increasing the access of poor 
     people to credit, other financial services, and related 
     training.
       (b) Contents.--The report described in subsection (a)--
       (1) should include how the President, in consultation with 
     the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development, the Secretary of State, and the 
     Secretary of the Treasury, will jointly develop a 
     comprehensive strategy for advancing the global 
     microenterprise sector in a way that maintains market 
     principles while assuring that the very poor, particularly 
     women, obtain access to financial services; and
       (2) shall provide guidelines and recommendations for--
       (A) instruments to assist microenterprise networks to 
     develop multi-country and regional microlending programs;
       (B) technical assistance to foreign governments, foreign 
     central banks and regulatory entities to improve the policy 
     environment for microfinance institutions, and to strengthen 
     the capacity of supervisory bodies to supervise microcredit 
     institutions;
       (C) the potential for federal chartering of United States-
     based international microfinance network institutions, 
     including proposed legislation;
       (D) instruments to increase investor confidence in 
     microcredit institutions which would strengthen the long-term 
     financial position of the microcredit institutions and 
     attract capital from private sector entities and individuals, 
     such as a rating system for microcredit institutions and 
     local credit bureaus;
       (E) an agenda for integrating microfinance into United 
     States foreign policy initiatives seeking to develop and 
     strengthen the global finance sector; and
       (F) innovative instruments to attract funds from the 
     capital markets, such as instruments for leveraging funds 
     from the local commercial banking sector, and the 
     securitization of microloan portfolios.
       (c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this 
     section, the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' 
     means the Committee on International Relations of the House 
     of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of 
     the Senate.

     SEC. 8. UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AS 
                   GLOBAL LEADER AND COORDINATOR OF BILATERAL AND 
                   MULTILATERAL MICROENTERPRISE ASSISTANCE 
                   ACTIVITIES.

       (a) Findings and Policy.--The Congress finds and declares 
     that--
       (1) the United States can provide leadership to other 
     bilateral and multilateral development agencies as such 
     agencies expand their support to the microenterprise sector; 
     and
       (2) the United States should seek to improve coordination 
     among G-7 countries in the support of the microenterprise 
     sector in order to leverage the investment of the United 
     States with that of other donor nations.
       (b) Sense of the Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress 
     that--
       (1) the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development and the Secretary of State should 
     seek to support and strengthen the effectiveness of

[[Page 6295]]

     microfinance activities in United Nations agencies, such as 
     the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) 
     and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which have 
     provided key leadership in developing the microenterprise 
     sector; and
       (2) the Secretary of the Treasury should instruct each 
     United States Executive Director of the Multilateral 
     Development Banks (MDBs) to advocate the development of a 
     coherent and coordinated strategy to support the 
     microenterprise sector and an increase of multilateral 
     resource flows for the purposes of building microenterprise 
     retail and wholesale intermediaries.

  The CHAIRMAN. Are there any amendments?


              Amendment Offered By Mr. Smith of New Jersey

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Amendment offered by Mr. Smith of New Jersey:
       Page 3, beginning on line 22, strike ``While this scale'' 
     and all that follows through line 25.
       Page 17, line 15, strike ``part 1'' and insert ``part I''.
       Page 19, line 2, strike ``, and'' and insert ``, or''.
       Page 19, after line 16, insert the following:
       ``(d) General Provisions.--
       ``(1) Policy provisions.--In providing the credit 
     assistance authorized by this section, the board should 
     apply, as appropriate, the policy provisions in this part 
     applicable to development assistance activities.
       ``(2) Default and procurement provisions.--
       ``(A) Default provision.--The provisions of section 620(q) 
     of this Act, or any comparable provisions of law, shall not 
     be construed to prohibit assistance to a country in the event 
     that a private sector recipient of assistance furnished under 
     this section is in default in its payment to the United 
     States for the period specified in such section.
       ``(B) Procurement provision.--Assistance may be provided 
     under this section without regard to section 604(a) of this 
     Act.
       ``(3) Terms and conditions of credit assistance.--(A) 
     Credit assistance provided under this section shall be 
     offered on such terms and conditions, including fees charged, 
     as the board may determine.
       ``(B) The principal amount of loans made or guaranteed 
     under this section in any fiscal year, with respect to any 
     single borrower, may not exceed $30,000,000.
       ``(C) No payment may be made under any guarantee issued 
     under this section for any loss arising out of fraud or 
     misrepresentation for which the party seeking payment is 
     responsible.
       ``(4) Full faith and credit.--All guarantees issued under 
     this section shall constitute obligations, in accordance with 
     the terms of such guarantees, of the United States of America 
     and the full faith and credit of the United States of America 
     is hereby pledged for the full payment and performance of 
     such obligations to the extent of the guarantee.
       Page 19, line 17, strike ``(d)'' and insert ``(e)''.
       Page 19, strike line 23 and all that follows through line 5 
     on page 20 and insert the following:
       ``(f) Funding.--(1)(A) Of the amounts made available to 
     carry out this part for each of the fiscal years 2000 and 
     2001, up to $5,000,000 may be made available for--
       ``(i) the subsidy cost, as defined in section 502(5) of the 
     Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990, to carry out this section; 
     and
       ``(ii) subject to subparagraph (B), the cost of 
     administrative expenses to carry out this section.
       ``(B) Of the amount made available under subparagraph (A) 
     to carry out this section for a fiscal year, not more than 
     $500,000 may be made available for administrative expenses 
     under subparagraph (A)(ii).
       ``(2) Amounts made available under paragraph (1) are in 
     addition to amounts available under any other provision of 
     law to carry out this section.
       Page 20, line 6, strike ``(f)'' and insert ``(g)''.
       Page 20, line 16, strike ``and each'' and insert ``or 
     any''.

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (during the reading). Mr. Chairman, I ask 
unanimous consent that the amendment be considered as read and printed 
in the Record.
  The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from 
New Jersey?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, this is an amendment that was 
crafted in conjunction with the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. 
Gejdenson) and the administration to fund the microfinance loan 
facility.
  The amendment provides that up to $5 million may be used to leverage 
up to $30 million to rescue a U.S.-supported microenterprise 
institution whose financial situation has been undermined by natural 
catastrophes or other events out of the control of that institution.
  We have seen key microfinance institutions undermined in Bangladesh 
and Central America where it is hard to run a bank after all your 
clients have been killed or made homeless by a flood or by a hurricane. 
With the ad hoc rescue packages we have assembled in the past, we have 
been able to not only prevent the collapse of U.S.-backed microfinance 
institutions, but to turn them into lending agents of the recovery 
process, especially in Honduras.
  This amendment would help create a microfinance loan facility to 
ensure that we no longer have to put together ad hoc packages to rescue 
such institutions. I think it is a good amendment, and I hope it has 
the full support of the Chamber.
  The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).
  The amendment was agreed to.
  The CHAIRMAN. Are there other amendments?
  If not, under the rule, the Committee rises.

                              {time}  1245

  Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. 
Lewis of Kentucky) having assumed the chair, Mr. Ewing, Chairman of the 
Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, reported that 
that Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1143) to 
establish a program to provide assistance for programs of credit and 
other financial services for microenterprises in developing countries, 
and for other purposes, pursuant to House Resolution 136, he reported 
the bill back to the House with an amendment adopted by the Committee 
of the Whole.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the rule, the previous question is 
ordered.
  The question is on the amendment.
  The amendment was agreed to.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was 
read the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on 
the table.

                          ____________________