House lawmakers are poised to extend a U.S. loan guarantee to the State of Israel, despite vocal objections from the Obama administration, according to reports.
Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R., Fla.), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Howard Berman (D., Calif.), the committee’s ranking member, proposed legislation last week that would permit the U.S. to uphold it’s $9 billion loan commitment to the Jewish state. The loan guarantees allow Israel to borrow money from lenders at a lower interest rate than the market dictates.
The State Department has requested that the loan be allowed to expire.
The Hill explains:
The original program allowed for $9 billion in loan guarantees over three years, but the law said that total amount must be reduced by the same amount that Israel is found to be spending on settlements in occupied territories. As a result of that language, the United State reduced its loan guarantee capacity by $1.1 billion, according to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on the program.
Israel has only used $4.1 of the remaining $7.9 billion in loan guarantees, leaving $3.8 billion in unused authority.
Ros-Lehtinen told the Hill that Congressional affirmation of the loan sends the signal that the U.S. continues to stand by Israel.
"Congress will continue to stand foursquare with Israel and provide it, upon request, with loan guarantees that provide a key cushion of support in times of need, at no cost to the American taxpayer," Ros-Lehtinen was quoted as saying.
Berman told the Hill: "Just as we are committed to ensuring Israel's qualitative military edge, we must do what we can to protect Israel's economic strength so it is able to address the many security threats it currently faces."