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EDITOR'S NOTE: During debate on the Foreign Operations Appropriation Bill, Rep. Bernard Sanders introduced an amendment to prohibit the Export-Import Bank of the United States from approving direct loans or loan guarantees to companies who set up headquarters outside of the United States to avoid U.S. taxes.

The Sanders Amendment is an attempt to address tax policy at the expense of U.S. workers' jobs.

The mission of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im) is to support U.S. jobs - we provide financing for goods and services made in the U.S.A. by U.S. workers.

• This amendment would cause a loss of jobs here in the United States. The foreign buyers will simply buy from other suppliers who do not make their products in the United States. This will result in the loss of high-paying American jobs.
• For example, the four companies cited by Rep. Sanders in a letter to his colleagues employ a total of over 53,000 U.S.-based workers.
• Ingersoll-Rand - 35,000
• Noble Drilling Corporation - about 1200
• Weatherford International - about 5000
• Nabors Industries - 12,000
• The proposed provision would limit Ex-Im Bank's ability to provide credits to local companies in Panama, Antigua and the other noted countries who buy U.S. goods. This would restrict opportunities for U.S. exporters and provide greater sales opportunities to Spanish, French, Japanese and other manufacturers.
• This is directly contrary to Section 2(b)(1)(G) of our Charter which states: Participation in or access to long-, medium and short-term financing, guarantees, and insurance provided by the Bank shall not be denied solely because the entity seeking participation or access is not a bank or is not a United States person. [emphasis added]
• This is a tax issue and we are not involved in tax policy.
• Ex-Im Bank is not a tool for tax or other regulatory policy. We are here to support the export sale of U.S. goods and services. If there are issues with the offshore incorporation of companies or their parents, those issues should be addressed directly in other relevant legislation. These tax issues shouldn't be addressed at the expense of U.S. workers' jobs.