Export-Import Bank Reauthorization: Frequently Asked Questions

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The Export-Import Bank of the United States , a wholly owned federal government corporation, is the official export credit agency of the U.S. government. Its mission is to assist in the financing of U.S. exports of goods and services to support U.S. employment. The agency’s general statutory charter expires on September 30, 2014. A sunset in Ex-Im Bank’s authority would mean that the agency’s authority to enter into new obligations generally would cease and a wind-down of operations would be required.

Congress is actively debating whether to renew Ex-Im Bank’s authority; if so, for how long and under what terms; and if not, the possibility of other policy options. The issue of Ex-Im Bank reauthorization has raised a number of frequently asked questions regarding Ex-Im Bank itself and reauthorization policy options. This report addresses many of those questions, including:

• What is the Export-Import Bank?

• What is the reauthorization debate over Ex-Im Bank?

• What is the Bank’s market and international context?

• What is its leadership structure?

• What are its programs, policies, and activities?

• How does its budget work?

• How does it manage risk?

• What are the implications of a sunset in authority for the Bank’s activities?

• What are historical and current approaches to Ex-Im Bank reauthorization?

For a general overview of Ex-Im Bank, see CRS Report R43581, Export-Import Bank: Overview and Reauthorization Issues, by Shayerah Ilias Akhtar. See also CRS In Focus IF00021, Export- Import Bank Reauthorization , by Shayerah Ilias Akhtar, and CRS In Focus IF00039, Export-Import Bank and the Federal Budget , by Mindy R. Levit. The contents of this report draw, in part, from existing CRS products.