Inter-American Development Bank General Capital Increase Act of 2021

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 616 To authorize the tenth general capital increase for the Inter-American Devel- opment Bank and to strengthen recovery efforts in Latin America and the Caribbean related to the COVID–19 pandemic, and for other pur- poses. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 6 (legislative day, MARCH 5), 2021 Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. KAINE, Mr. CASSIDY, and Mr. CARDIN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations A BILL To authorize the tenth general capital increase for the Inter- American Development Bank and to strengthen recovery efforts in Latin America and the Caribbean related to the COVID–19 pandemic, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Inter-American Devel- 4 opment Bank General Capital Increase Act of 2021’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress makes the following findings: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 616 IS (1) The region of Latin America and the Carib- 1 bean has suffered severely from the coronavirus dis- 2 ease 2019 (commonly referred to as ‘‘COVID–19’’), 3 with more than 18,000,000 confirmed cases since 4 February 2020, according to the Inter-American De- 5 velopment Bank. 6 (2) In 2020, as a result of COVID–19, gross 7 domestic product per capita fell 8.5 percent across 8 Latin America and the Caribbean, entirely reversing 9 steady advancements in regional gross domestic 10 product per capita since 2010, according to the Eco- 11 nomic Commission for Latin America and the Carib- 12 bean. 13 (3) Initial assessments by the Economic Com- 14 mission for Latin America and the Caribbean indi- 15 cate that, throughout Latin America and the Carib- 16 bean, the COVID–19 pandemic will have— 17 (A) pushed an additional 45,500,000 peo- 18 ple into poverty, increasing the total number of 19 people living in poverty from 185,500,000 to 20 230,900,000, or approximately 37.3 percent of 21 the Latin American and Caribbean population, 22 in 2020; and 23 (B) caused the total number of individuals 24 living in extreme poverty to increase by 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 616 IS 28,500,000 from 67,700,000 to 96,200,000, or 1 approximately 15.5 percent of the Latin Amer- 2 ican and Caribbean population, in 2020. 3 (4) The Inter-American Development Bank es- 4 timated in May 2020 that 17,000,000 formal jobs 5 would be lost as a result of the pandemic, increasing 6 the share of jobs in informal sectors of the region’s 7 economies to 62 percent. September 2020 findings 8 from the International Labour Organization noted 9 that 34,000,000 workers across 9 countries in the 10 region lost their jobs in the first half of 2020. 11 (5) The pandemic also has complicated the hu- 12 manitarian and development challenges countries 13 across Latin America and the Caribbean face as 14 hosts to more than 4,300,000 Venezuelan refugees 15 and migrants, prompting the Inter-American Devel- 16 opment Bank to launch a migration initiative that 17 aims to provide $85,000,000 in grants and leverage 18 investments of $1,100,000,000 in social protection, 19 health, education, and employment. 20 (6) The pandemic has severely disrupted edu- 21 cation systems across Latin America and the Carib- 22 bean because of a lack of equipment and pedagogical 23 tools required for effective remote schooling. Accord- 24 ing to data compiled by the United Nations Edu- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 616 IS cational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and 1 the Inter-American Development Bank, fewer than 2 30 percent of low-income families impacted by deci- 3 sions to halt in-person classes have access to a com- 4 puter and only around 60 percent of secondary 5 school teachers have the skills needed for virtual in- 6 struction. 7 (7) Countries across Latin America and the 8 Caribbean continue to face enduring economic chal- 9 lenges, including persistent inequality, high levels of 10 tax evasion and avoidance, and elevated debt levels. 11 (8) The stability, sustainable development, and 12 inclusive growth of economies in Latin America and 13 the Caribbean is in the national interest of the 14 United States, as the region accounts for 21.7 per- 15 cent of United States trade in goods in 2019, ac- 16 cording to the Economic Commission for Latin 17 America and the Caribbean. 18 (9) The Inter-American Development Bank is 19 the world’s oldest and largest regional development 20 bank, and has worked continuously since 1959 to 21 foster economic, social, and institutional develop- 22 ment in Latin America and the Caribbean. 23 (10) The Inter-American Development Bank is 24 uniquely positioned to advance post-pandemic recov- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 616 IS ery efforts and to mitigate the social and economic 1 impacts of the pandemic. As early as March 2020, 2 the Inter-American Development Bank announced 3 the allotment of up to $12,000,000,000 toward im- 4 mediate public health responses, efforts to revitalize 5 social safety nets for vulnerable populations, and 6 strategic economic productivity and employment ini- 7 tiatives. 8 (11) The 48 borrowing and non-borrowing 9 member countries of the Inter-American Develop- 10 ment Bank last agreed to a ninth general capital in- 11 crease as part of the Bank’s annual meeting on 12 March 20–22, 2010. 13 (12) Under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and 14 Economic Security Act (Public Law 116–136; 134 15 Stat. 281) (commonly referred to as the ‘‘CARES 16 Act’’), enacted on March 27, 2020, Congress ap- 17 proved capital stock increases for the International 18 Finance Corporation and the African Development 19 Bank to strengthen the ‘‘ability of foreign countries 20 to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus 21 and to the adverse economic impacts of 22 coronavirus’’. 23 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 24 It is the sense of Congress that— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 616 IS (1) the spread of SARS–CoV–2, the virus that 1 causes COVID–19, has had a significant impact on 2 economic, social, and humanitarian conditions 3 throughout Latin America and the Caribbean; 4 (2) the Inter-American Development Bank is 5 the preeminent multilateral development bank dedi- 6 cated to regional economic and social development 7 and the betterment of lives across Latin America 8 and the Caribbean; 9 (3) the Bank has played an integral role in sup- 10 porting member countries with the coordination and 11 implementation of policies to mitigate the effects of 12 the COVID–19 pandemic, the Venezuelan refugee 13 and migration crisis, and other crises in the Western 14 Hemisphere; 15 (4) a capital increase for the Bank would great- 16 ly increase its capacity to provide financing, institu- 17 tional knowledge, and technical support to foster re- 18 covery and inclusion initiatives between regional gov- 19 ernments, private sector entities, and international 20 organizations; and 21 (5) the United States, as a founding member of 22 the Bank, should support a capital stock increase to 23 ensure the Bank is prepared to offer additional sup- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 616 IS port to member countries severely impacted by the 1 COVID–19 pandemic and other crises. 2 SEC. 4. TENTH GENERAL CAPITAL INCREASE. 3 (a) SUPPORT FOR A GENERAL CAPITAL INCREASE.— 4 The President shall take steps to support a tenth general 5 capital increase for the Inter-American Development 6 Bank. 7 (b) DIPLOMATIC ENGAGEMENT.—The President 8 shall advance diplomatic engagement to build support 9 among member countries of the Bank for a tenth general 10 capital increase for the Bank in order to strengthen the 11 capacity of the Bank— 12 (1) to support Latin American and Caribbean 13 countries in their efforts to address the COVID–19 14 pandemic and the related economic impact; and 15 (2) to advance inclusive economic and social de- 16 velopment in the Americas. 17 (c) PROGRESS REPORT.—Not later than 45 days 18 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President 19 shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 20 Senate and the Committee on Financial Services of the 21 House of Representatives a report detailing efforts to 22 carry out subsections (a) and (b). 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 616 IS (d) TENTH CAPITAL INCREASE.—The Inter-Amer- 1 ican Development Bank Act (22 U.S.C. 283 et seq.) is 2 amended by adding at the end the following: 3 ‘‘SEC. 42. TENTH CAPITAL INCREASE. 4 ‘‘(a) VOTE AUTHORIZED.—The United States Gov- 5 ernor of the Bank is authorized to vote in favor of a reso- 6 lution to increase the capital stock of the Bank by 7 $80,000,000,000 over a period not to exceed 5 years. 8 ‘‘(b) SUBSCRIPTION AUTHORIZED.— 9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The United States Gov- 10 ernor of the Bank may subscribe on behalf of the 11 United States to 1,990,714 additional shares of the 12 capital stock of the Bank. 13 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Any subscription by the 14 United States to the capital stock of the Bank shall 15 be effective only to such extent and in such amounts 16 as are provided in advance in appropriations Acts. 17 ‘‘(c) LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO- 18 PRIATIONS.— 19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to pay for the in- 20 crease in the United States subscription to the Bank 21 under subsection (b), there is authorized to be ap- 22 propriated $24,014,857,191 for payment by the Sec- 23 retary of the Treasury. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 616 IS ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—Of the amount 1 authorized to be appropriated under paragraph 2 (1)— 3 ‘‘(A) $600,371,430 shall be for paid in 4 shares of the Bank; and 5 ‘‘(B) $23,414,485,761 shall be for callable 6 shares of the Bank.’’. 7 SEC. 5. SUPPORT FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY 8 INITIATIVES OF INTER-AMERICAN DEVELOP- 9 MENT BANK. 10 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find- 11 ings: 12 (1) The Inter-American Development Bank has 13 served as an executing agency for the Global Envi- 14 ronment Facility, a grant-making and financing fa- 15 cility supported by 182 countries to address global 16 environmental issues and sustainable development. 17 (2) The Bank has never had its own environ- 18 mental grant-making and financing facility despite 19 the fact that the Americas are home to the world’s 20 largest tropical rain forest and include countries sig- 21 nificantly affected by natural disasters annually. 22 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 23 gress that the Bank should— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 616 IS (1) establish its own environmental grant-mak- 1 ing and financing facility in order to implement and 2 expand environmental policies, metrics, and stand- 3 ards, to strengthen resilience and disaster prepared- 4 ness, and to improve sustainability and conservation; 5 and 6 (2) continue to strengthen environmental safe- 7 guards as an element of economic development in 8 the Western Hemisphere. 9 (c) DIPLOMATIC ENGAGEMENT.—The President shall 10 advance diplomatic engagement to build support among 11 member countries of the Bank for the creation of an envi- 12 ronmental fund and financing facility as part of the tenth 13 general capital increase for the Bank. 14 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S616.IS S616 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS