99–010 

Calendar No. 147 

112TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 112–67 

A BILL TO PROMOTE SUSTAINABLE PRIVATE SECTOR 

GROWTH AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN HAITI 

AUGUST 30 (legislative day, AUGUST 2), 2011.—Ordered to be printed 

Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of August 2, 2011 

Mr. KERRY, from the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 954] 

The Committee on Foreign Relations, having had under consideration of the bill (S. 954) to promote the strengthening of the Haitian private sector, reports favorably thereon without amendment 

and recommends that the bill do pass. 

CONTENTS 

Page 

I. Purpose ........................................................................................................... 1 

II. Committee Action .......................................................................................... 1 

III. Discussion ....................................................................................................... 2 

IV. Cost Estimate ................................................................................................. 4 

V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 5 

VI. Changes in Existing Law .............................................................................. 5 

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 954 is to promote sustainable private sector 

growth and economic development in Haiti. 

II. COMMITTEE ACTION

S. 954 was introduced by Senators Lugar, Durbin, and Rubio on 

May 11, 2011. On May 17, 2011, the committee ordered S. 954 reported favorably by voice vote. 


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III. DISCUSSION

S. 954, the Haitian-American Enterprise Fund Act, authorizes 

the establishment of a fund to provide loans, equity investments 

and other forms of support to small- and medium-sized private enterprises to create jobs in Haiti. The legislation provides several 

purposes for the establishment of the Fund, including to: 

1. Promote the development of Haiti’s private sector, particularly 

small- and medium-sized enterprises, the agricultural sector 

and joint ventures with United States and Haitian participants; and 

2. Promote policies and practices to strengthen Haiti’s private 

sector through advocating good governance and transparency 

in Haiti as well as through loans, grants, equity investments, 

feasibility studies, technical assistance, insurance, guarantees 

and other measures. 

The Haitian-American Enterprise Fund (the Fund) is modeled 

after similar funds established through the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 (P.L. 101–179; 22 U.S.C. 

5421) to assist the economic development of Eastern Europe. Funds 

authorized under the SEED Act were invested in over 500 enterprises in 19 countries, leveraged an additional $5 billion in private 

investment capital from outside the U.S. Government, provided 

substantial development capital where supply was limited, and created or sustained over 260,000 jobs through investment and development activities. 

The bill provides for the Fund to be administered by a nonprofit 

entity under the supervision of a board of directors consisting of six 

private citizens from the United States or Haiti, of which not more 

than two may be citizens of Haiti, appointed by the President of 

the United States. The committee recognizes the important leadership role the board of directors must play and expects the Fund’s 

board members to be individuals who have led successful business 

careers and demonstrated experience and expertise in international 

and particularly emerging markets similar to the experience of individuals who previously served on the Board of Directors of a successful Enterprise Fund established by the United States Government on or after January 1, 1990. The legislation also states that 

the President may appoint, upon the recommendation of the board, 

two additional board members, of which, only one can be a noncitizen of the United States. 

The bill incorporates provisions of the SEED Act specifying that 

no part of the funds of the Enterprise Fund shall inure to the benefit of any board member, officer, or employee of the Enterprise 

Fund, except as salary or reasonable compensation for services. 

The committee notes that board members of prior Enterprise 

Funds have served without compensation and encourages the 

Board of the Haiti Enterprise Fund to follow this practice. In addition, consistent with the practice of prior Enterprise Funds, the 

committee expects that any firm, association, or entity in which a 

board member of the Fund serves as partner, director, officer, or 

employee will not receive financing from the Fund. 

The bill directs the U.S. Agency for International Development 

(USAID) to have effective administrative oversight of the fund. The 

bill requires a grant agreement between USAID and the Fund esVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:38 Sep 03, 2011 Jkt 099010 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR067.XXX SR067

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tablishing the rules and procedures—as specified by the Secretary 

of State—for the utilization of the Fund’s capital. The bill requires 

that these rules and procedures will include provisions specified by 

the Secretary of State to ensure that the Fund is not used to 

finance money laundering or terrorist activities. 

The legislation also directs the Fund to take into account such 

considerations as internationally recognized worker rights and 

other internationally recognized human rights, environmental factors, United States economic and employment effects, and the likelihood of commercial viability of the activity receiving assistance. 

The Fund may conduct public offerings or private placements for 

the purpose of soliciting and accepting United States venture capital. 

The legislation directs the President to notify the relevant committees of the identity of the organization that will operate the 

Fund not later than 15 days before designating said organization. 

The President is also directed to notify appropriate congressional 

committees of the names and qualifications of the individuals who 

will comprise the initial board of directors, the procedures established for the purposes of curtailing money-laundering and terrorist 

financing activities and the size of the financial grant that shall be 

made available to the Fund not later than 15 days before designating the organization that will operate the Fund. 

The bill incorporates provisions of the SEED Act requiring that 

the Fund will be subjected to an annual audit by a U.S. licensed 

public accountant and recipients of support from the Fund will 

keep independent records of their use of Fund assistance. 

The bill also requires that the Fund provide an annual report to 

the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, the Senate Committee 

on Appropriations, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and 

the House Committee on Appropriations detailing its administrative expenses. The bill directs the Government Accountability 

Office (GAO) to conduct an assessment of the Fund’s activities 

every 3 years and provide a report to the above-mentioned congressional committees. 

The bill provides that the Fund should, to the maximum extent 

practicable, adopt best practices and procedures used by previous 

Enterprise Funds. 

The bill directs the Fund to end its reinvestment cycle not later 

than December 31, 2021, unless USAID determines—after consultation with the above-mentioned congressional committees—that 

the reinvestment cycle should be extended. The bill directs the assets of the Fund at the time of its dissolution to be returned to the 

General Fund of the U.S. Treasury for the purpose of deficit reduction. The committee expects that the capital to establish the fund 

and cover its administrative expenses shall be drawn from funds 

already authorized through existing appropriations. 

The committee, noting the April 2011 constructive trip of previous Enterprise Fund Board Members to Haiti in advance of the 

creation of a Haitian-American Enterprise Fund, suggests that the 

observations and recommendations offered by these previous board 

members be given careful consideration by the Secretary of State 

and USAID during the formation of the Fund. 

The committee notes that the cost estimate provided by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the capitalization of 


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the Fund would require an appropriation of $200 million. The committee understands that the CBO estimate was largely based on an 

average of the appropriations granted to previous enterprise funds 

authorized under the SEED Act. In light of the current realities 

and absorptive capacity of Haiti’s economy, the committee expects 

that the appropriation used to capitalize the Fund will be significantly lower than the cost estimate provided by the CBO. The size 

of any such appropriation will ultimately be determined during the 

Congress’ regular appropriations process. 

IV. COST ESTIMATE

In accordance with rule XXVI, paragraph 11(a) of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the committee provides this estimate of the 

costs of this legislation prepared by the Congressional Budget 

Office. 

UNITED STATES CONGRESS, 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, May 26, 2011. 

Hon. JOHN F. KERRY, 

Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 954, the Haitian-American 

Enterprise Fund Act. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Sunita D’Monte. 

Sincerely, 

DOUGLAS W. ELMENDORF. 

Enclosure. 

S. 954—Haitian-American Enterprise Fund Act—As ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on May 

17, 2011 

S. 954 would authorize the President to establish an enterprise 

fund for Haiti to stimulate private-sector development in that country and would authorize the appropriation of such sums as may be 

necessary for that purpose. The fund would be similar to enterprise 

funds established in the 1990s for several countries and would provide technical and financial assistance to the private sector. 

Based on information from the Administration and appropriations provided for previous enterprise funds, CBO estimates that 

implementing the bill would cost $200 million over the 2012–2016 

period, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts. CBO further estimates that the fund would be capitalized over four years 

with separate installments of funding. The bill would require the 

Government Accountability Office to assess the fund’s activities 

and report to the Congress periodically. CBO estimates that the 

cost of implementing that requirement would be less than $500,000 

over the 2012–2016 period, assuming the availability of appropriated funds. Enacting the bill would not affect direct spending or 

revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 

The estimated budgetary impact of S. 954 is shown in the following table. The costs of this legislation fall within budget function 150 (international affairs). 


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[By fiscal year, in millions of dollars] 

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2012- 

2016 

Estimated Authorization Level .......................................... 50 50 50 50 0 200 

Estimated Outlays ............................................................ 25 50 50 50 25 200 

The bill would require the fund to be terminated no later than 

December 31, 2021 (unless the U.S. Agency for International 

Development determines it should be extended) and the assets of 

the fund at the time of dissolution to be returned to the Treasury. 

Other enterprise funds have generally had a life span of 10 to 15 

years. Some had assets that exceeded the original funding levels, 

while others have experienced losses. Because of the uncertainty 

surrounding the term and performance of the fund, CBO cannot 

provide an estimate of any potential receipts; furthermore, any 

such receipts would probably be received outside the 10-year budget period. 

S. 954 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates 

as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sunita D’Monte. The 

estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 11(b) of the Standing Rules of 

the Senate, the committee has determined that there is no regulatory impact as a result of this regulation. 

VI. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with rule XXVI, paragraph 12 of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the committee has determined that no changes 

in existing law are made by the bill, as reported. 

Æ 


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