Bill Details
S.816 - 119th Congress
Status
Latest action
2025-03-03 - Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. (text: CR S1461-1462)
Introduced Date
2025-03-03
Policy Area
Foreign Trade and International Finance
Committees
View committees (1)
Sponsors
Cosponsors
7
0
0
AI Summary This summary was generated by AI from the bill text. AI can get information wrong.
This bill would require the President to create a broad U.S. plan to boost trade, investment, and development in Africa and in Latin America and the Caribbean. Its main goal is to increase U.S. exports of goods and services to those regions by 200% over 10 years, which supporters say could help create more American jobs. The bill also calls for stronger coordination across government, more support for export promotion, and better training for officials who help U.S. businesses sell abroad.
- The President would have to work with Congress, federal agencies, development banks, and private groups, including businesses and diaspora communities, when building the plan.
- The strategy would need to be sent to Congress within 200 days, and a progress report would be due 3 years later.
- The Commerce Department would name two special coordinators: one for Africa and one for Latin America and the Caribbean, to help carry out the plan.
- The bill also encourages trade missions to these regions within one year and requires training for U.S. trade and economic কর্মকর্তাদের on export and financing programs so they can better support American exporters.
Official Summaries
Increasing American Jobs Through Greater United States Exports to Africa and Latin America Act of 2025
This bill requires the President to establish a comprehensive U.S. strategy and a standardized training plan to increase U.S. exports to Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
Specifically, the bill directs the President to establish and submit to Congress a comprehensive U.S. strategy for public and private investment, trade, and development in Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The strategy shall focus on increasing exports of U.S. goods and services to Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean by at least 200% in real dollar value within 10 years.
Additionally, the bill directs the President to develop a plan for standardized training of (1) U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service officers, and (2) economic officers of the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development.
The bill also directs the Department of Commerce to (1) designate a Special Africa Export Strategy Coordinator, and (2) designate a Special Latin America and the Caribbean Export Strategy Coordinator. These coordinators shall oversee the development and implementation of the strategy to increase U.S. exports to Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
Current Full Text
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 816 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 816
To increase United States jobs through greater United States exports to
Africa and Latin America, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 3, 2025
Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Boozman, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Cassidy, and
Mr. Coons) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To increase United States jobs through greater United States exports to
Africa and Latin America, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Increasing American Jobs Through
Greater United States Exports to Africa and Latin America Act of
2025''.
SEC. 2. INVESTMENT, TRADE, AND DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA AND LATIN AMERICA
AND THE CARIBBEAN.
(a) Strategy Required.--
(1) In general.--The President shall establish a
comprehensive United States strategy for public and private
investment, trade, and development in Africa and Latin America
and the Caribbean.
(2) Focus of strategy.--The strategy required by paragraph
(1) shall focus on increasing exports of United States goods
and services to Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean by
200 percent in real dollar value by the date that is 10 years
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(3) Consultations.--In developing the strategy required by
paragraph (1), the President shall consult with--
(A) Congress;
(B) each agency that is a member of the Trade
Promotion Coordinating Committee;
(C) the relevant multilateral development banks, in
coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury and the
respective United States Executive Directors of such
banks;
(D) each agency that participates in the Trade
Policy Staff Committee;
(E) the President's Export Council;
(F) each of the development agencies;
(G) any other Federal agencies with responsibility
for export promotion or financing and development; and
(H) the private sector, including businesses,
nongovernmental organizations, and African and Latin
American and Caribbean diaspora groups.
(4) Submission to appropriate congressional committees.--
(A) Strategy.--Not later than 200 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall
submit to the appropriate congressional committees the
strategy required by subsection (a).
(B) Progress report.--Not later than 3 years after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the President
shall submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report on the implementation of the
strategy required by paragraph (1).
(b) Special Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean Export
Strategy Coordinators.--The Secretary of Commerce shall designate an
official of the Department of Commerce to serve as Special Africa
Export Strategy Coordinator and an official of the Department to serve
as Special Latin America and the Caribbean Export Strategy
Coordinator--
(1) to oversee the development and implementation of the
strategy required by subsection (a);
(2) to coordinate developing and implementing the strategy
with--
(A) the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee;
(B) the Director General for the United States and
Foreign Commercial Service and Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Global Markets;
(C) the Assistant United States Trade
Representative for African Affairs or the Assistant
United States Trade Representative for the Western
Hemisphere, as appropriate;
(D) the Assistant Secretary of State for African
Affairs or the Assistant Secretary of State for Western
Hemisphere Affairs, as appropriate;
(E) the Administrator of the Foreign Agricultural
Service of the Department of Agriculture;
(F) the Export-Import Bank of the United States;
(G) the United States International Development
Finance Corporation; and
(H) the development agencies; and
(3) to consider and reflect on the impact of the promotion
of exports of goods and services from the United States on the
economies of and employment opportunities in the countries
importing those goods and services, with a view toward
improving secure supply chains, avoiding economic disruptions,
and stabilizing economic growth through a trade and export
strategy.
(c) Trade Missions to Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean.--
It is the sense of Congress that, not later than one year after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce and other
high-level officials of the United States Government with
responsibility for export promotion, financing, and development should
conduct joint trade missions to Africa and to Latin America and the
Caribbean.
(d) Training.--The President shall develop a plan--
(1) to standardize the training received by United States
and Foreign Commercial Service officers, economic officers of
the Department of State, and economic officers of the United
States Agency for International Development with respect to the
programs and procedures of the Export-Import Bank of the United
States, the United States International Development Finance
Corporation, the Small Business Administration, and the United
States Trade and Development Agency; and
(2) to ensure that, not later than one year after the date
of the enactment of this Act--
(A) all United States and Foreign Commercial
Service officers that are stationed overseas receive
the training described in paragraph (1); and
(B) in the case of a country to which no United
States and Foreign Commercial Service officer is
assigned, any economic officer of the Department of
State stationed in that country receives that training.
(e) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs, the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation, the Committee on Finance, and the
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the
Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Ways
and Means of the House of Representatives.
(2) Development agencies.--The term ``development
agencies'' means the United States Department of State, the
United States Agency for International Development, the
Millennium Challenge Corporation, the United States
International Development Finance Corporation, the United
States Trade and Development Agency, the United States
Department of Agriculture, and relevant multilateral
development banks.
(3) Multilateral development banks.--The term
``multilateral development banks'' has the meaning given that
term in section 1701(c)(4) of the International Financial
Institutions Act (22 U.S.C. 262r(c)(4)) and includes the
African Development Foundation.
(4) Trade policy staff committee.--The term ``Trade Policy
Staff Committee'' means the Trade Policy Staff Committee
established pursuant to section 2002.2 of title 15, Code of
Federal Regulations.
(5) Trade promotion coordinating committee.--The term
``Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee'' means the Trade
Promotion Coordinating Committee established under section 2312
of the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C. 4727).
(6) United states and foreign commercial service.--The term
``United States and Foreign Commercial Service'' means the
United States and Foreign Commercial Service established by
section 2301 of the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C.
4721).
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