Sec. 3. Sovereign lending program for eligible Latin American and Caribbean partner countries
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Not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, shall establish a sovereign lending program for eligible Latin American and Caribbean partner countries— to support their short-term energy needs; to fund projects that help them transition to renewable or clean energy that reduces carbon emissions; to fund technical assistance programs that ensure that there is a continuous pipeline of clean energy projects available for investment from the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean; to provide capital and financing for United States companies to make it easier to invest in renewable energy projects in smaller and developing markets; and to provide financing to partner countries to help purchase battery solutions that contribute to reliable and affordable electricity prices.
To be eligible to receive a loan under the program, an eligible Latin American or Caribbean partner country shall submit to the Secretary of the Treasury an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require. At minimum, the Secretary shall require an applicant to provide— information about the energy projects that will be supported through these funds, including their economic and technical viability, feasibility to attract funding from the private sector, net carbon impact, the potential to use United States goods and services during project implementation, and enhancement of energy market integration; data on how funds will support equitable job creation; information regarding environmental impact, including on biodiversity; data on the impact upon marginalized communities; and certification that no funds shall be used to purchase a commodity from or support in any manner a corporation or state-owned enterprise that has an ownership relationship with the Government of the People’s Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party, the Government of the Russian Federation, or any other foreign adversary or malign influence.
In selecting among applications for a loan under this section, the Secretary of State shall give preference to an eligible Latin American or Caribbean partner country that shares democratic values, respect for human rights, and economic freedom, as determined by the Secretary of State, including members of the Alliance for Development in Democracy (the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Panama, and Ecuador) and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). A loan provided under the program— shall be— a zero-interest loan, not to exceed 30 years in duration; or a low-interest concessional loan, not to exceed 50 years in duration; shall not contain any requirements that an eligible Latin American or Caribbean partner country engage in austerity measures or policies that increase poverty and inequality, diminish the quality of life, and threaten the immediate access of goods and services; shall ensure that no funds are used to purchase a commodity from or support in any manner a corporation or state-owned enterprise that has an ownership relationship with the Government of the People’s Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party, the Government of the Russian Federation, or any other foreign adversary or malign actor; and shall be subject to such other terms and conditions as the Secretary of the Treasury, in concurrence with the Secretary of State, determines to be appropriate.
Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 4 years, the Secretary of the Treasury, in concurrence with the Secretary of State, and in consultation with the Secretary of Energy and the heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate a report on progress in the implementation of the program.
The report shall— include a description of how the program strengthens United States national security and economic interests in Latin America and the Caribbean; include an assessment of— the status and effectiveness of current efforts by regional governments, multilateral development banks, and the private sector to promote energy security in Latin America and the Caribbean and to transition to clean energy practices; major challenges hindering such efforts; and how the United States can strengthen the effectiveness of such efforts; identify how activities by the Department of State, the United States Agency for International Development, the United States International Development Finance Corporation, and other related agencies can effectively be leveraged to strengthen and promote energy independence and security in Latin America and the Caribbean; assess diplomatic initiatives taken to secure specific national commitments by governments of eligible Latin American and Caribbean partner countries to undertake efforts to promote energy security and independence in the region, address corruption and rule of law concerns, modernize digital and physical infrastructure, improve ease of doing business, and finance and incentivize energy security initiatives; and detail coordination of efforts with relevant multilateral development banks to advance energy security and independence of eligible Latin American and Caribbean partner countries.
The Secretary of the Treasury— shall ensure that a full audit of the program is performed on an annual basis; and shall submit the results of the audit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate. There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of the Treasury $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2029 to carry out the program.
In this section, the term eligible Latin American or Caribbean partner country — means a country that— is a beneficiary country for purposes of the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act ( 19 U.S.C. 2701 et seq. ); is a member state of the Caribbean Community (commonly referred to as CARICOM ); is a member state of the Alliance for Development in Democracy; is a country in the Western Hemisphere that is a party to a free trade agreement or preference program with the United States; or is a beneficiary country of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative; and does not include any country that— has been sanctioned by the United States; or the Secretary of State determines— to be a state sponsor of terrorism; or to be a foreign adversary, defined as a foreign government engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances of conduct adverse to the national security of the United States or security and safety of United States persons.
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Sec. 3
Sovereign lending program for eligible Latin American and Caribbean partner countries
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