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Title IX — Matters Related to Financial Services

H.R. 4792 · 117th Congress · Jul 29, 2021 · Lineage

IX Matters Related to Financial Services

Sec. 901 Opposition of the United States to an increase in the weight of the Chinese renminbi in the special drawing rights basket of the International Monetary Fund

(1)
The Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United States Governor of, and the United States Executive Director at, the International Monetary Fund to use the voice and vote of the United States to oppose any increase in the weight of the Chinese renminbi in the basket of currencies used to determine the value of Special Drawing Rights, unless the Secretary of the Treasury has submitted to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a written report which includes a certification that—
(A)
the People’s Republic of China is in compliance with all its obligations under Article VIII of the 19 Articles of Agreement of the Fund;
(B)
in the preceding 12 months, there has not been a report submitted under section 3005 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 or section 701 of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 in which the People’s Republic of China has been found to have manipulated its currency;
(C)
the People’s Republic of China has instituted and is implementing the policies and practices necessary to ensure that the renminbi is freely usable (within the meaning of Article XXX(f) of the Articles of Agreement of the Fund); and
(D)
the People’s Republic of China adheres to the rules and principles of the Paris Club and the OECD Arrangement on Officially Supported Export Credits.

Sec. 902 Sunset

Section 901 shall have no force or effect beginning 10 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Sec. 903 Strengthening congressional oversight of special drawing rights at the IMF

Section 6 of the Special Drawing Rights Act (22 U.S.C. 286q) is amended—
(1)
in subsection (a)—
(A)
by striking “each basic period” and inserting “any 10-year period”; and
(B)
by inserting “25 percent of” before “the United States quota”; and
(2)
in subsection (b)—
(A)
by inserting “, or consent to or acquiesce in such an allocation,” before “without consultations”;
(B)
by striking “90” and inserting “180”; and
(C)
by inserting “Chairman and ranking minority members of” before “the appropriate subcommittees”.

Sec. 904 Prohibition on allocations for perpetrators of genocide and state sponsors of terrorism without congressional authorization

Section 6(b) of the Special Drawing Rights Act (22 U.S.C. 286q(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“(3) Unless Congress by law authorizes such action, neither the President nor any person or agency shall on behalf of the United States vote to allocate Special Drawing Rights under article XVIII, sections 2 and 3, of the Articles of Agreement of the Fund to a member country of the Fund, if the President of the United States has found that the government of the member country—

“(A) has committed genocide at any time during the 10-year period ending with the date of the vote; or

“(B) has repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.”

Sec. 905 Opposition to quota increase for countries that undermine IMF principles

The Bretton Woods Agreements Act (22 U.S.C. 286–286zz) is amended—
(1)
by redesignating the 2nd section 73 (as added by section 1901 of division P of Public Law 116–94) as section 74; and
(2)
by adding at the end the following:

“75. Opposition to quota increase for countries that undermine fund principles

“(a) In general—Not less than 7 days before consideration of any proposal to increase the quota of a foreign member of the Fund that is one of the 10 largest shareholders in the Fund, the Secretary of the Treasury shall submit a report to the Committee on Financial Services of the House and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate that determines whether the foreign member meets the following criteria:

“(1) The member is in compliance with all obligations set forth in Article VIII of the Articles of Agreement of the Fund.

“(2) The member, in the preceding 12 months, was not found to have manipulated its currency, as determined in a report required by section 3005 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 or section 701 of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015.

“(3) In the case of a member whose currency is included in the Special Drawing Rights basket of the Fund, the currency of the member is freely usable (within the meaning of Article XXX(f) of the Articles of Agreement of the Fund) and the Secretary concurs with the determinations of the Fund described in that Article, and, in the preceding 12 months, the member has demonstrated its commitment to ensuring that its currency is widely used and traded internationally.

“(4) The member is committed to the rules and principles of the Paris Club.

“(b) Effect of determination—On determining that a member of the Fund has failed to meet any of the criteria set forth in subsection (a), the Secretary shall instruct the Governor of the Fund to use the voice and vote of the United States to oppose the proposal to increase the quota of the member in the Fund.

“(c) Waiver—The President may waive subsection (b) with respect to a member of the Fund on reporting to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate that—

“(1) the waiver is important to the national interest of the United States, with an explanation of the reasons therefor; or

“(2) the member is attempting to rectify the failure, with a description of the actions the member is taking to fulfill any unmet criteria.

“(d) Prohibition—Notwithstanding subsection (c), the Governor of the Fund may not use the voice or vote of the United States to support a proposal to increase the quota of a member in the Fund if the President of the United States determines that the government of the member interfered in a United States election for Federal office (as defined in section 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971) in the 4 years preceding consideration of the proposal.

“(e) Proposal consideration—For the purposes of this section, consideration of a proposal to increase the quota of a foreign member of the Fund does not include consent to an amendment to the Articles of Agreement of the Fund that has been authorized by law.

“(f) Sunset—This section shall cease to have force or effect 10 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.”

Sec. 906 Opposition of the United States to International Monetary Fund loan to a country whose public debt is not likely to be sustainable in the medium term

(a)
In general— Section 68(a) of the Bretton Woods Agreements Act (22 U.S.C. 286tt(a)) is amended—
(1)
in paragraph (2), by inserting after the comma the following: “or a staff analytical report of the Fund states that there is not a high probability that the public debt of the country is sustainable in the medium term,”; and
(2)
by adding at the end the following:

“(3) Waiver authority—The Secretary of the Treasury may waive paragraph (2) on a case-by-case basis if the Secretary provides a written certification to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate that the waiver is important to the national interest of the United States, and includes with the certification a written statement of the reasons therefor.”

(b)
Sunset— This section shall cease to have force or effect 10 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Sec. 907 Congressional notification with respect to exceptional access lending

(a)
In general— The Bretton Woods Agreements Act (22 U.S.C. 286–286zz), as amended by section 2 of this Act, is amended by adding at the end the following:

“76. Congressional notification with respect to exceptional access lending

“(a) In general—The United States Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund may not support any proposal that would alter the criteria used by the Fund for exceptional access lending if the proposal would permit a country that is ineligible, before the proposed alteration, to receive exceptional access lending, unless, not later than 15 days before consideration of the proposal by the Board of Executive Directors of the Fund, the Secretary of the Treasury has submitted to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report on the justification for the proposal and the effects of the proposed alteration on moral hazard and repayment risk at the Fund.

“(b) Waiver—The President may reduce the applicable notice period required under subsection (a) to not less than 7 days on reporting to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate that the reduction is important to the national interest of the United States, with an explanation of the reasons therefor.”

(b)
Sunset— This section shall cease to have force or effect 10 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Sec. 908 Condition on IMF quota increase for the People’s Republic of China

(a)
In general— The United States Governor of the International Monetary Fund (in this section referred to as the “Fund”) shall use the voice and vote of the United States to oppose, and may not consent to, an increase in the quota of the People’s Republic of China in the Fund, unless the Secretary of the Treasury reports to the Congress that—
(1)
the Board of Governors of the Fund is considering admission of Taiwan as a member of the Fund, pursuant to the recommendation of the Board of Executive Directors of the Fund; or
(2)
Taiwan enjoys meaningful participation in the Fund, including through—
(A)
participation in regular surveillance activities of the Fund with respect to the economic and financial policies of Taiwan, consistent with Article IV consultation procedures of the Fund;
(B)
employment opportunities for Taiwan nationals, without regard to any consideration that, in the determination of the Secretary, does not generally restrict the employment of nationals of member countries of the Fund; and
(C)
the ability to receive appropriate technical assistance and training by the Fund.
(b)
Waiver— The Secretary of the Treasury may waive subsection (a) of this section with respect to a proposal on reporting to the Congress that providing the waiver will substantially promote the objective of securing more equitable treatment of Taiwan at each international financial institution (as defined in section 1701(c)(2) of the International Financial Institutions Act).
(c)
Sunset— This section shall have no force or effect beginning with the date that is 7 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Sec. 909 Ensuring non-discrimination with respect to travel policies at the international financial institutions

(a)
In general— The Secretary shall instruct the United States Executive Director at each international financial institution to use the voice and vote of the United States to ensure that the travel policies and procedures of the respective institution with respect to Taiwan as a destination or transit point do not impose any administrative conditions, including through restrictions on logistical arrangements or meeting participants, that do not generally apply to a member country of the institution as a destination or transit point, except as required temporarily for reasons of public safety or public health.
(b)
Definitions— In this section:
(1)
International financial institution— The term “international financial institution” has the meaning given the term in section 1701(c)(2) of the International Financial Institutions Act.
(2)
Secretary— The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Treasury.
(c)
Waiver— The Secretary may waive subsection (a) with respect to an international financial institution for up to 1 year at a time on reporting to the Congress that providing the waiver—
(1)
will substantially promote the objective of securing more equitable treatment of Taiwan at the international financial institution; or
(2)
is in the national interest of the United States, with a detailed explanation of the reasons therefor.
(d)
Progress report— The Chairman of the National Advisory Council on International Monetary and Financial Policies shall submit to the Congress an annual report that describes the progress made in advancing the travel policies and procedures described in subsection (a), and may consolidate that report with the annual report required by section 1701 of the International Financial Institutions Act or any other report required to be submitted to the Secretary.
(e)
Sunset— This section shall have no force or effect beginning with the earlier of—
(1)
the date that is 7 years after the date of the enactment of this Act; or
(2)
the date on which the Secretary reports to the Congress that each international financial institution has adopted the travel policies and procedures described in subsection (a).

Sec. 910 Testimony requirement

In each of the next 7 years in which the Secretary of the Treasury is required by section 1705(b) of the International Financial Institutions Act to present testimony, the Secretary shall include in the testimony a description of the efforts of the United States to support the greatest participation practicable by Taiwan at each international financial institution (as defined in section 1701(c)(2) of such Act).

Sec. 911 Statement of United States policy regarding the dollar

It is the policy of the United States to facilitate the position of the dollar as the primary global reserve currency, including through vigorous support of—
(1)
deep, open, and transparent financial markets;
(2)
continuous improvements to domestic and international payment methods that facilitate dollar transactions;
(3)
sound macroeconomic governance and a rules-based system of international trade; and
(4)
clear and realistic objectives in the deployment of financial restrictions arising from national security considerations.

Sec. 912 Report on dollar strategy

(a)
In general— The Secretary of the Treasury (in this section referred to as the “Secretary”) shall establish a strategy that implements the policy described in section 2.
(b)
Consultation— The Secretary shall, as appropriate, consult with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System when establishing the strategy pursuant to subsection (a).
(c)
Report— Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a report that describes—
(1)
the strategy established by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (a);
(2)
key measures taken by the Secretary to implement the strategy;
(3)
any legislative recommendations that would strengthen the ability of the United States to advance the policy described in section 2;
(4)
a description of efforts by major foreign central banks, including the People’s Bank of China, to create an official digital currency, as well as any risks to the national interest of the United States posed by such efforts;
(5)
the status of efforts to assess or develop an official United States digital currency by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; and
(6)
any implications for the strategy established by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (a) arising from the relative state of development of an official digital currency by the United States and other nations, including the People’s Republic of China.
(d)
Renminbi assessment— The report described in subsection (c) shall—
(1)
evaluate the role of the renminbi in international payments and foreign exchange reserves;
(2)
assess currency-related policies in China, including—
(A)
the provision of Chinese government-backed assets;
(B)
the extension of credit abroad by the Chinese government; and
(C)
the development of cross-border payment systems as tools to advance strategic objectives of the government of the People’s Republic of China; and
(3)
recommend policy options aimed at mitigating medium-term and long-term risks to the national interest of the United States that may arise as a result of the internationalization of the renminbi.
(e)
Annual updates— After submitting an initial report in accordance with subsection (c), the Secretary shall submit, to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate, an updated version of such report each year.

Sec. 913 Sunset

Section 912 shall have no force or effect after the date that is 7 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.