What This Bill Does
This bill prevents the Export-Import Bank of the United States (a government agency that provides financing for exports) from giving money to people or businesses that owe serious unpaid federal taxes. The bill allows the President to waive this ban only in urgent situations affecting U.S. interests.
Who It Affects
The Export-Import Bank of the United States. People and businesses that apply for financing from the bank. The President of the United States. The Secretary of the Treasury. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue. Congress members on the Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Services Committee.
Key Provisions
• The Export-Import Bank cannot provide financing to any person with seriously delinquent tax debt or to any project where someone involved in the project owes serious unpaid taxes (Sec. 1, subsection m, paragraph 1).
• The bank must check the System for Award Management website and use data analysis to determine if someone owes seriously delinquent tax debt, while consulting with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue (Sec. 1, subsection m, paragraph 2).
• The President may waive the ban if urgent circumstances significantly affecting U.S. interests require the financing, and the President must report this decision to Congress within 30 days with reasons and supporting information (Sec. 1, subsection m, paragraph 3).
• Seriously delinquent tax debt does not include taxes being paid on time under an agreement, taxes under dispute, or taxes where a collection process has been stopped (Sec. 1, subsection m, paragraph 4).
What Changes
The Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 is amended to add a new prohibition. The bank must now screen borrowers for unpaid federal taxes before providing financing.
Important Definitions
Seriously delinquent tax debt means a federal tax debt that the Treasury Secretary has officially recorded and can collect through bank levies or court action. This does not include debts being paid on time through a formal agreement, debts under appeal, debts subject to an active collection hold, or debts where the collection hold has been released.
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 1021
To prohibit the Export-Import Bank of the United States from providing
financing to persons with seriously delinquent tax debt.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH 29, 2023
Mr. BRAUN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
A BILL
To prohibit the Export-Import Bank of the United States
from providing financing to persons with seriously delin-
quent tax debt.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. PROHIBITION ON FINANCING BY EXPORT-IM-
3
PORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES FOR
4
PERSONS WITH SERIOUSLY DELINQUENT TAX
5
DEBT.
6
Section 2 of the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945
7
(12 U.S.C. 635) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
8
lowing:
9
VerDate Sep 11 2014
20:12 Apr 07, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\S1021.IS
S1021
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
2
•S 1021 IS
‘‘(m) PROHIBITION
ON FINANCING
FOR PERSONS
1
WITH SERIOUSLY DELINQUENT TAX DEBT.—
2
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Bank may not provide
3
financing to any person with seriously delinquent tax
4
debt or for any project if any person participating
5
in the project has seriously delinquent tax debt.
6
‘‘(2) DETERMINATIONS
OF
DEBT.—For pur-
7
poses of paragraph (1), the Bank shall determine if
8
a person has seriously delinquent tax debt—
9
‘‘(A) using information available through
10
the System for Award Management website and
11
data-analytical approaches; and
12
‘‘(B) in consultation with the Commis-
13
sioner of Internal Revenue.
14
‘‘(3) WAIVER.—The President of the United
15
States may waive the prohibition under paragraph
16
(1) with respect to a person if the President—
17
‘‘(A) determines that there are urgent and
18
compelling circumstances significantly affecting
19
the interests of the United States that require
20
the financing to be provided; and
21
‘‘(B) not later than 30 days after making
22
that determination, submits to the Committee
23
on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the
24
Senate and the Committee on Financial Serv-
25
VerDate Sep 11 2014
20:12 Apr 07, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\S1021.IS
S1021
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
3
•S 1021 IS
ices of the House of Representatives a report
1
that includes the rationale for the determina-
2
tion and relevant information supporting the
3
determination.
4
‘‘(4) SERIOUSLY DELINQUENT TAX DEBT DE-
5
FINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘seriously de-
6
linquent tax debt’—
7
‘‘(A) means a Federal tax liability that has
8
been assessed by the Secretary of the Treasury
9
under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and
10
may be collected by the Secretary by levy or by
11
a proceeding in court; and
12
‘‘(B) does not include—
13
‘‘(i) a debt that is being paid in a
14
timely manner pursuant to an agreement
15
under section 6159 or section 7122 of such
16
Code;
17
‘‘(ii) a debt with respect to which a
18
collection due process hearing under sec-
19
tion 6330 of such Code, or relief under
20
subsection (a), (b), or (f) of section 6015
21
of such Code, is requested or pending;
22
‘‘(iii) a debt with respect to which a
23
continuous levy has been issued under sec-
24
tion 6331 of such Code (or, in the case of
25
VerDate Sep 11 2014
20:12 Apr 07, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\S1021.IS
S1021
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
4
•S 1021 IS
an applicant for employment, a debt with
1
respect to which the applicant agrees to be
2
subject to such a levy); and
3
‘‘(iv) a debt with respect to which
4
such a levy is released under section
5
6343(a)(1)(D) of such Code.’’.
6
Æ
VerDate Sep 11 2014
20:12 Apr 07, 2023
Jkt 039200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\S1021.IS
S1021
pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB