Sec. 252. BUILD Americas Unit
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Title I of the BUILD Act of 2018 ( 22 U.S.C. 9611 et seq. ) is amended by adding at the end the following new section: There is established in the Corporation a BUILD Americas Unit (in this division referred to as the Unit ). The purposes of the Unit are as follows: To advance the interests of the United States Government. To near-shore industries from the People's Republic of China. To support the development of large scale infrastructure ecosystems for the purposes of rapid industrialization of the Western Hemisphere.
To support the relocation of strategic supply chains (as that term is defined in section 254 of the Americas Act ). The Unit shall operate in all Americas partner countries (as that term is defined in section 2 of the Americas Act ), without regard to the income limitations described in section 1412(c)(2). Such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section shall be made available from the Re-shoring and Near-shoring Account established under section 301 and the amounts authorized under section 212(a)(2) of the Americas Act .
There shall be in the Unit, a Deputy Chief Executive Officer for the Americas (in this section referred to as the Deputy Chief ) , who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall report to the Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for the Americas Partnership. The Deputy Chief shall be compensated at a rate equivalent to level I of the Executive Schedule under section 5312 of title 5, United States Code. Without regard to any provision of title 5, United States Code, governing the appointment of employees in the civil service, the Deputy Chief may appoint— such individuals as necessary to provide not fewer than 2 staff members from the Unit to each Americas partner country; such individuals as necessary to serve as program managers under this section; and such other individuals as may be necessary to enable the Unit to perform its duties.
Individuals appointed as program managers under subparagraph (A)(ii) shall have— demonstrated experience and expertise in securities in the private sector; an appropriate securities license, as determined by the Deputy Chief; and held the position of investment banker as commonly understood for hiring at private entities. Notwithstanding any provision of title 5, United States Code, governing the rates of pay or classification of employees in the executive branch, the Deputy Chief may prescribe the rates of basic pay for program managers appointed under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) at a rate not in excess of a rate equal to 150 percent of the maximum rate of basic pay authorized for positions at level I of the Executive Schedule under section 5312 of title 5, United States Code.
The Deputy Administrator for Programs shall establish criteria to evaluate the effectiveness of program managers, which shall include measuring the economic success of portfolio instruments approved by program managers. Upon the determination that a program manager fails to meet the criteria described in subparagraph (A), the Deputy Administrator for Programs may recommend the dismissal of such program manager, who may be dismissed at the discretion of the Chief Administrator.
Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the service of a program manager appointed under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) may not exceed 5 years. The Deputy Chief may, in the case of a particular program manager appointed under paragraph (1)(A)(ii), extend the period to which service is limited under subparagraph
(A)by up to 2 years if the Deputy Chief determines that such action is necessary to promote the efficiency of the Unit, as applicable. The authorities in this subsection shall only be exercised to— carry out of the policy of the United States in section 251 of the Americas Act and the purposes of the Unit in subsection (b); mitigate risks to United States taxpayers by sharing risks with the private sector and qualifying sovereign entities through co-financing and structuring of tools; and ensure that support provided under this section is additional to private sector resources by mobilizing private capital that would otherwise not be deployed without such support. In exercising the authorities in this subsection, the Unit— shall consider— whether an activity will maximize the profits of the entity receiving support under this subsection; the potential return on investment of an activity; the sustainability of the economic model of the entity receiving support under this subsection; any secondary economic impact of the activity and whether such impact will spur additional clusters of investment; whether taxation can be used to generate revenue for public entities receiving support under this subsection; and the feasibility of economic success for the entity receiving support under this subsection; and may not consider external factors that will not impact the economic success of an activity. The Unit may award grants to United States businesses and entities and governments in Americas partner countries under such terms and conditions as the Unit shall prescribe to carry out the purposes of the Americas Act . A grant under this paragraph may be made only to a United States business, a for profit or not-for profit entity registered in an Americas partner country, or a government of such a country (including a local government) that submits to the Unit an application at such time, in such manner, and containing or accompanied by such information as the Unit may reasonably require. In approving applications under this paragraph, the Unit shall give priority to applications that demonstrate the development of a private sector activity that will advance the economic objectives of the Unit described in subsection (b). Under this paragraph— program managers may approve grants of not more than $4,999,999; the Deputy Chief may approve grants of not less than $5,000,000 and not more than $49,999,999; and the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Americas Partnership may approve grants of not less than $50,000,000. The Unit shall— use the e-governance framework established under title I for management of and reporting on grants; and protect all restricted personal information (as that term is defined in section 119 of title 18, United States Code) collected under clause (ii). The Corporation shall carry out clause
(i)by collecting information with respect to each such grant, including— the beneficiary of the grant; the amount; the location of activities funded by the grant; a description of the activities funded by the grant; a justification for approving the grant; the amount of funds provided for an activity by the beneficiary of the grant; a description of any other financial support from the Unit; a description of how awarding the grant is anticipated to combat the influence of the People's Republic of China in the Western Hemisphere; and a description of how the grant overlaps with any other financial support provided by persons other than the Unit. The Unit may make loans or guaranties in accordance with the guidelines in subparagraph
(B)and upon such other terms and conditions as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Americas Partnership may determine. Under this paragraph— program managers may approve loans and guaranties of not more than $4,999,999; the Deputy Chief may approve loans and guaranties of not less than $5,000,000 and not more than $49,999,999; and the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Americas Partnership may approve loans and guaranties of not less than $50,000,000. Any loan made or guaranteed under this paragraph may be issued to— a United States business; a for-profit entity in an Americas partner country; or a government of an Americas partner country (including a local government). Notwithstanding subclause (I), a loan may be made or guaranteed by the Unit to a country that is not an Americas partner country if the purpose of the loan is to support near-shoring of strategic supply chains under section 254 of the Americas Act . The Unit may provide a line of credit of not more than $50,000,000 to a United States business that meets such requirements as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Americas Partnership may determine. A loan made or guaranteed under this paragraph may bear an interest rate lower than the rate for an equivalent loan available in the local market. For each loan made or guaranteed under this paragraph, the Secretary of the Treasury shall make available to the Unit, at a variable interest rate that is not less than zero percent, funds from the amounts authorized under section 212(a)(2) of the Americas Act . For each direct loan made by the Unit to a covered entity, the Unit shall remit— any repayment on the principal amount, including the final repayment and liquidation of the loan, and any amount of interest required by the Secretary of the Treasury in accordance with subclause
(II)to the Secretary of the Treasury, who shall use such amounts to replenish the amounts authorized under section 212(a)(2) of the Americas Act ; and any profit made from interest above the amount required by rate of interest established by the Secretary of the Treasury under subclause
(II)to the Secretary of the Treasury, who shall deposit such amounts into the Re-shoring and Near-shoring Account established under section 301 of the Americas Act . Loans and guaranties made under this paragraph may be denominated and repayable in United States dollars or foreign currencies. Foreign currency denominated loans and guaranties should only be provided if the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Americas Partnership determines there is a substantive policy rationale for such loans and guaranties. For any loan under this paragraph, the Unit shall hold in an escrow account funds in an amount that is equal to 5 percent of the principal amount of the loan for the life of the loan or until the loan has been repaid. The funds described in subclause
(I)shall be taken from the Re-shoring and Near-shoring Account established under section 301 of the Americas Act . Loans and guaranties issued under paragraph
(1)shall be subject to the requirements of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 ( 2 U.S.C. 661 et seq. ). It is the sense of Congress that— equity is essential, particularly with respect to transformational technology in the energy and technology sectors; and firms engaged in complex, advanced manufacturing production require greater capital and more time than nonproduction firms. The Unit may, as an investor, support projects with funds or use other mechanisms for the purpose of purchasing, and may make and fund commitments to purchase, invest in, make pledges in respect of, or otherwise acquire, equity or quasi-equity securities or shares or financial interests of any entity, including as a limited partner or other investor in investment funds, upon such terms and conditions as the Unit may determine. For the purpose of investments under subparagraph (B), the Unit shall use the amounts authorized under section 212(a)(2) of the Americas Act . For any investment under this paragraph, the Unit shall hold in an escrow account funds, which shall be taken from the Re-shoring and Near-shoring Account established under section 301 of the Americas Act , in an amount that is equal to 5 percent of the amount of funds invested. Upon liquidation of any investment, the unit shall remit— the principal amount and any amount of interest required by the Secretary for the use of such principal amount of such investment to the Secretary of the Treasury who shall use such amounts to replenish the amounts authorized under section 212(a)(2) of the Americas Act ; and any profit gained from and the amount held in escrow in accordance with clause
(ii)for such investment to the Secretary of the Treasury who shall deposit such funds in the Re-Shoring and Near-Shoring Account established under section 301 of that Act. Any investment made by the Unit under this paragraph shall be accompanied by an investment of not less than 51 percent by the United States business or entity or government of an Americas partner country. The aggregate amount of equity investment by the Unit with respect to any project shall not exceed 49 percent. The Unit may enter into joint investment partnerships with international financial institutions or other similar institutions, including the World Bank and the Andean Development Corporation-Development Bank of Latin America. Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), the Unit may not enter into any partnership with any person, including any financial institution, business, organization, or individual, that is headquartered in, has a principal place of business in, or is otherwise directly or indirectly owned or controlled by of the government of the Russian Federation, the People's Republic of China, or any member country of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA). In this paragraph, the term international financial institutions has the meaning given that term in section 1701(c)(2) of the International Financial Institutions Act ( 22 U.S.C. 262r(c)(2) ). In order to ensure the protection of the investments of United States businesses, in whole or in part, against any political risks, such as currency inconvertibility and transfer restrictions, expropriation, war, terrorism, civil disturbance, breach of contract, and nonhonoring of financial obligations, the Unit may issue to United States businesses that invest in Americas partner countries insurance or reinsurance— upon such terms and conditions as the Unit may determine; and at 100 percent of the value of the insured investment. For any insurance or reinsurance described in subparagraph (A), the Unit shall hold in an escrow account at a commercial bank funds, which shall be taken from the Re-shoring and Near-shoring Account established under section 301 of the Americas Act , in an amount that is equal to 5 percent of the insurance amount. Any insurance or reinsurance described in subparagraph
(A)may be issued at a lower rate than the lowest available rate for equivalent insurance or reinsurance in the local market. .
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