II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1168 

To facilitate efficient investments and financing of infrastructure projects 

and new, long-term job creation through the establishment of an Infrastructure Financing Authority, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 17, 2017 

Mr. WARNER (for himself, Mr. BLUNT, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. 

COONS, Mr. HELLER, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. TILLIS, and Mr. 

BLUMENTHAL) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To facilitate efficient investments and financing of infrastructure projects and new, long-term job creation through 

the establishment of an Infrastructure Financing Authority, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Building and Renewing Infrastructure for Development 

6 and Growth in Employment Act’’ or the ‘‘BRIDGE Act’’. 

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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Purpose. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

TITLE I—INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING AUTHORITY 

Sec. 101. Establishment and general authority of IFA. 

Sec. 102. Voting members of the Board of Directors. 

Sec. 103. Chief Executive Officer. 

Sec. 104. Powers and duties of the Board of Directors. 

Sec. 105. Senior management. 

Sec. 106. Office of Technical and Rural Assistance. 

Sec. 107. Special Inspector General for IFA. 

Sec. 108. Other personnel. 

Sec. 109. Compliance. 

TITLE II—TERMS AND LIMITATIONS ON DIRECT LOANS AND 

LOAN GUARANTEES 

Sec. 201. Eligibility criteria for assistance from IFA and terms and limitations 

of loans. 

Sec. 202. Loan terms and repayment. 

Sec. 203. Project Delivery Task Force. 

Sec. 204. Compliance and enforcement. 

Sec. 205. Audits; reports to the President and Congress. 

Sec. 206. Effect on other laws. 

TITLE III—FUNDING OF IFA 

Sec. 301. Fees. 

Sec. 302. Self-sufficiency of IFA. 

Sec. 303. Funding. 

Sec. 304. Contract authority. 

Sec. 305. Limitation on authority. 

TITLE IV—TAX EXEMPTION REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE AND 

LOCAL BONDS 

Sec. 401. National limitation on amount of tax-exempt financing for facilities. 

TITLE V—BUDGETARY EFFECTS 

Sec. 501. Budgetary effects. 

3 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

4 The purpose of this Act is to facilitate investment in, 

5 and the long-term financing of, economically viable eligible 

6 infrastructure projects of regional or national significance 

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1 that are in the public interest in a manner that com2 plements existing Federal, State, local, and private fund3 ing sources for these projects and introduces a merit-based 

4 system for financing those projects, in order to mobilize 

5 significant private sector investment, create long-term 

6 jobs, and ensure United States competitiveness through 

7 a self-sustaining institution that limits the need for ongo8 ing Federal funding. 

9 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this Act: 

11 (1) BLIND TRUST.—The term ‘‘blind trust’’ 

12 means a trust in which the beneficiary has no knowl13 edge of the specific holdings and no rights over how 

14 those holdings are managed by the fiduciary of the 

15 trust prior to the dissolution of the trust. 

16 (2) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—The term ‘‘Board 

17 of Directors’’ means the Board of Directors of IFA. 

18 (3) CHAIRPERSON.—The term ‘‘Chairperson’’ 

19 means the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of 

20 IFA. 

21 (4) CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER.—The term 

22 ‘‘Chief Executive Officer’’ means the chief executive 

23 officer of IFA, appointed under section 103. 

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1 (5) COST.—The term ‘‘cost’’ has the meaning 

2 given the term in section 502 of the Federal Credit 

3 Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661a). 

4 (6) DIRECT LOAN.—The term ‘‘direct loan’’ has 

5 the meaning given the term in section 502 of the 

6 Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661a). 

7 (7) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti8 ty’’ means— 

9 (A) an individual; 

10 (B) a corporation; 

11 (C) a partnership, including a public-pri12 vate partnership; 

13 (D) a joint venture; 

14 (E) a trust; 

15 (F) a State or any other governmental en16 tity, including a political subdivision or any 

17 other instrumentality of a State; or 

18 (G) a revolving fund. 

19 (8) ELIGIBLE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible in21 frastructure project’’ means the construction, 

22 consolidation, alteration, or repair of the fol23 lowing sectors: 

24 (i) Intercity passenger or freight rail 

25 lines, intercity passenger rail facilities or 

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1 equipment, and intercity freight rail facili2 ties or equipment. 

3 (ii) Intercity passenger bus facilities 

4 or equipment. 

5 (iii) Public transportation facilities or 

6 equipment. 

7 (iv) Highway facilities, including 

8 bridges and tunnels. 

9 (v) Airports and air traffic control 

10 systems. 

11 (vi) Port or marine terminal facilities, 

12 including approaches to marine terminal 

13 facilities or inland port facilities, and port 

14 or marine equipment, including fixed 

15 equipment to serve approaches to marine 

16 terminals or inland ports. 

17 (vii) Transmission or distribution 

18 pipelines. 

19 (viii) Inland waterways. 

20 (ix) Intermodal facilities or equipment 

21 related to 2 or more of the sectors de22 scribed in clauses (i) through (viii). 

23 (x) Water treatment and solid waste 

24 disposal facilities. 

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1 (xi) Storm water management sys2 tems. 

3 (xii) Dams and levees. 

4 (xiii) Facilities or equipment for en5 ergy transmission, distribution or storage. 

6 (B) AUTHORITY OF THE BOARD OF DIREC7 TORS TO MODIFY SECTORS.—The Board of Di8 rectors may make modifications, at the discre9 tion of the Board, to any of the sectors de10 scribed in subparagraph (A) by a vote of not 

11 fewer than 5 of the voting members of the 

12 Board of Directors. 

13 (9) IFA.—The term ‘‘IFA’’ means the Infra14 structure Financing Authority established under sec15 tion 101. 

16 (10) INVESTMENT-GRADE RATING.—The term 

17 ‘‘investment-grade rating’’ means a rating of BBB 

18 minus, Baa3, or higher assigned to an eligible infra19 structure project by a ratings agency. 

20 (11) LOAN GUARANTEE.—The term ‘‘loan guar21 antee’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

22 502 of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 

23 U.S.C. 661a). 

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1 (12) OTRA.—The term ‘‘OTRA’’ means the 

2 Office of Technical and Rural Assistance created 

3 pursuant to section 106. 

4 (13) PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP.—The 

5 term ‘‘public-private partnership’’ means any eligible 

6 entity— 

7 (A)(i) that is undertaking the development 

8 of all or part of an eligible infrastructure 

9 project that will have a measurable public ben10 efit, pursuant to requirements established in 

11 one or more contracts between the entity and a 

12 State or an instrumentality of a State; or 

13 (ii) the activities of which, with respect to 

14 such an eligible infrastructure project, are sub15 ject to regulation by a State or any instrumen16 tality of a State; 

17 (B) that owns, leases, or operates or will 

18 own, lease, or operate, the project in whole or 

19 in part; and 

20 (C) the participants in which include not 

21 fewer than 1 nongovernmental entity with sig22 nificant investment and some control over the 

23 project or entity sponsoring the project vehicle. 

24 (14) RATING AGENCY.—The term ‘‘rating agen25 cy’’ means a credit rating agency registered with the 

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1 Securities and Exchange Commission as a nationally 

2 recognized statistical rating organization (as defined 

3 in section 3(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 

4 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a))). 

5 (15) REGIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE ACCEL6 ERATOR.—The term ‘‘regional infrastructure accel7 erator’’ means an organization created by public sec8 tor agencies through a multijurisdictional or 

9 multistate agreement to provide technical assistance 

10 to local jurisdictions that will facilitate the imple11 mentation of innovative financing and procurement 

12 models to public infrastructure projects. 

13 (16) RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT.—The 

14 term ‘‘rural infrastructure project’’— 

15 (A) has the same meaning given the term 

16 in section 601(15) of title 23, United States 

17 Code; and 

18 (B) includes any eligible infrastructure 

19 project sector described in clauses (i) through 

20 (xvii) of paragraph (8)(A) located in any area 

21 other than a city with a population of more 

22 than 250,000 inhabitants within the city limits. 

23 (17) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

24 means the Secretary of the Treasury or the designee 

25 of the Secretary of the Treasury. 

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1 (18) SENIOR MANAGEMENT.—The term ‘‘senior 

2 management’’ means the chief financial officer, chief 

3 risk officer, chief compliance officer, general counsel, 

4 chief lending officer, and chief operations officer of 

5 IFA, and such other officers as the Board of Direc6 tors may, by majority vote, add to senior manage7 ment. 

8 (19) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

9 (A) each of the several States of the 

10 United States; and 

11 (B) the District of Columbia. 

12 (20) TASK FORCE.—The term ‘‘Task Force’’ 

13 means the Project Delivery Task Force established 

14 under section 203. 

15 TITLE I—INFRASTRUCTURE 

16 FINANCING AUTHORITY 

17 SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT AND GENERAL AUTHORITY OF 

18 IFA. 

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF IFA.—The Infrastructure 

20 Financing Authority is established as a wholly owned Gov21 ernment corporation. 

22 (b) GENERAL AUTHORITY OF IFA.—IFA shall— 

23 (1) provide direct loans and loan guarantees to 

24 facilitate eligible infrastructure projects that are ecoVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:39 May 22, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1168.IS S1168
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1 nomically viable, in the public interest, and of re2 gional or national significance; and 

3 (2) carry out any other activities and duties au4 thorized under this Act. 

5 (c) INCORPORATION.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board of Directors first 

7 appointed shall be deemed the incorporator of IFA, 

8 and the incorporation shall be held to have been ef9 fected from the date of the first meeting of the 

10 Board of Directors. 

11 (2) CORPORATE OFFICE.—IFA shall— 

12 (A) maintain an office in Washington, DC; 

13 and 

14 (B) for purposes of venue in civil actions, 

15 be considered to be a resident of Washington, 

16 DC. 

17 (d) RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SECRETARY.—The Sec18 retary shall take such action as may be necessary to assist 

19 in implementing IFA and in carrying out the purpose of 

20 this Act. 

21 (e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Chapter 91 of title 

22 31, United States Code, does not apply to IFA, unless oth23 erwise specifically provided in this Act. 

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1 SEC. 102. VOTING MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIREC2 TORS. 

3 (a) VOTING MEMBERSHIP OF THE BOARD OF DIREC4 TORS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—IFA shall have a Board of 

6 Directors consisting of 7 voting members appointed 

7 by the President, by and with the advice and consent 

8 of the Senate, not more than 4 of whom shall be 

9 from the same political party. 

10 (2) CHAIRPERSON.—One of the voting members 

11 of the Board of Directors shall be designated by the 

12 President, by and with the advice and consent of the 

13 Senate, to serve as Chairperson of the Board of Di14 rectors. 

15 (3) CONGRESSIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not 

16 later than 30 days after the date of enactment of 

17 this Act, the majority leader of the Senate, the mi18 nority leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the 

19 House of Representatives, and the minority leader of 

20 the House of Representatives shall each submit a 

21 recommendation to the President for appointment of 

22 a member of the Board of Directors, after consulta23 tion with the appropriate committees of Congress. 

24 (4) SPECIAL CONSIDERATION OF RURAL INTER25 ESTS AND GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY.—In making an 

26 appointment under this subsection, the President 

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1 shall give consideration to the geographic areas of 

2 the United States in which the members of the 

3 Board of Directors live and work, particularly to en4 sure that the infrastructure priorities and concerns 

5 of each region of the country, including rural areas 

6 and small communities, are represented on the 

7 Board of Directors. 

8 (b) VOTING RIGHTS.—Each voting member of the 

9 Board of Directors shall have an equal vote in all decisions 

10 of the Board of Directors. 

11 (c) QUALIFICATIONS OF VOTING MEMBERS.—Each 

12 voting member of the Board of Directors shall— 

13 (1) be a citizen of the United States; and 

14 (2) have significant demonstrated expertise in— 

15 (A) the management and administration of 

16 a financial institution relevant to the operation 

17 of IFA; or 

18 (B) the financing, development, or oper19 ation of infrastructure projects, including in the 

20 evaluation and selection of eligible infrastruc21 ture projects based on the purposes, goals, and 

22 objectives of this Act. 

23 (d) TERMS.— 

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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro2 vided in this Act, each voting member of the Board 

3 of Directors shall be appointed for a term of 5 years. 

4 (2) INITIAL STAGGERED TERMS.—Of the voting 

5 members first appointed to the Board of Directors— 

6 (A) the initial Chairperson and 3 of the 

7 other voting members shall each be appointed 

8 for a term of 5 years; and 

9 (B) the remaining 3 voting members shall 

10 each be appointed for a term of 2 years. 

11 (3) DATE OF INITIAL NOMINATIONS.—The ini12 tial nominations for the appointment of all voting 

13 members of the Board of Directors shall be made 

14 not later than 60 days after the date of enactment 

15 of this Act. 

16 (4) BEGINNING OF TERM.—The term of each of 

17 the initial voting members appointed under this sec18 tion shall commence immediately upon the date of 

19 appointment, except that, for purposes of calculating 

20 the term limits specified in this subsection, the ini21 tial terms shall each be construed as beginning on 

22 January 22 of the year following the date of the ini23 tial appointment. 

24 (5) VACANCIES.— 

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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy in the posi2 tion of a voting member of the Board of Direc3 tors shall be filled by the President, by and 

4 with the advice and consent of the Senate. 

5 (B) TERM.—A member appointed to fill a 

6 vacancy on the Board of Directors occurring be7 fore the expiration of the term for which the 

8 predecessor was appointed shall be appointed 

9 only for the remainder of that term. 

10 (e) MEETINGS.— 

11 (1) OPEN TO THE PUBLIC; NOTICE.—Except as 

12 provided in paragraph (3), all meetings of the Board 

13 of Directors shall be— 

14 (A) open to the public; and 

15 (B) preceded by reasonable public notice. 

16 (2) FREQUENCY.—The Board of Directors shall 

17 meet— 

18 (A) not later than 60 days after the date 

19 on which all members of the Board of Directors 

20 are first appointed; 

21 (B) at least quarterly after the date de22 scribed in subparagraph (A); and 

23 (C) at the call of the Chairperson or 3 vot24 ing members of the Board of Directors. 

25 (3) EXCEPTION FOR CLOSED MEETINGS.— 

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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The voting members of 

2 the Board of Directors may, by majority vote, 

3 close a meeting to the public if, during the 

4 meeting to be closed, there is likely to be dis5 closed proprietary or sensitive information re6 garding an eligible infrastructure project under 

7 consideration for assistance under this Act. 

8 (B) AVAILABILITY OF MINUTES.—The 

9 Board of Directors shall prepare minutes of any 

10 meeting that is closed to the public, which min11 utes shall be made available as soon as prac12 ticable, but not later than 1 year after the date 

13 of the closed meeting, with any necessary 

14 redactions to protect any proprietary or sen15 sitive information. 

16 (4) QUORUM.—For purposes of meetings of the 

17 Board of Directors, 5 voting members of the Board 

18 of Directors shall constitute a quorum. 

19 (f) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—Each voting 

20 member of the Board of Directors shall be compensated 

21 at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the annual rate 

22 of basic pay prescribed for level III of the Executive 

23 Schedule under section 5314 of title 5, United States 

24 Code, for each day (including travel time) during which 

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1 the member is engaged in the performance of the duties 

2 of the Board of Directors. 

3 (g) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—A voting member of 

4 the Board of Directors may not participate in any review 

5 or decision affecting an eligible infrastructure project 

6 under consideration for assistance under this Act, if the 

7 member has or is affiliated with an entity who has a finan8 cial interest in that project. 

9 SEC. 103. CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Executive Officer 

11 shall— 

12 (1) be a nonvoting member of the Board of Di13 rectors; 

14 (2) be responsible for all activities of IFA; and 

15 (3) support the Board of Directors in accord16 ance with this Act and as the Board of Directors de17 termines to be necessary. 

18 (b) APPOINTMENT AND TENURE OF THE CHIEF EX19 ECUTIVE OFFICER.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall appoint 

21 the Chief Executive Officer, by and with the advice 

22 and consent of the Senate. 

23 (2) TERM.—The Chief Executive Officer shall 

24 be appointed for a term of 6 years. 

25 (3) VACANCIES.— 

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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any vacancy in the of2 fice of the Chief Executive Officer shall be filled 

3 by the President, by and with the advice and 

4 consent of the Senate. 

5 (B) TERM.—The person appointed to fill a 

6 vacancy in the Chief Executive Officer position 

7 that occurs before the expiration of the term for 

8 which the predecessor was appointed shall be 

9 appointed only for the remainder of that term. 

10 (c) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Chief Executive Offi11 cer— 

12 (1) shall have significant expertise in manage13 ment and administration of a financial institution, 

14 or significant expertise in the financing and develop15 ment of infrastructure projects; and 

16 (2) may not— 

17 (A) hold any other public office; 

18 (B) have any financial interest in an eligi19 ble infrastructure project then being considered 

20 by the Board of Directors, unless that interest 

21 is placed in a blind trust; or 

22 (C) have any financial interest in an in23 vestment institution or its affiliates or any 

24 other entity seeking or likely to seek financial 

25 assistance for any eligible infrastructure project 

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1 from IFA, unless any such interest is placed in 

2 a blind trust for the tenure of the service of the 

3 Chief Executive Officer plus 2 additional years. 

4 (d) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Chief Executive Officer 

5 shall have such executive functions, powers, and duties as 

6 may be prescribed by this Act, the bylaws of IFA, or the 

7 Board of Directors, including— 

8 (1) responsibility for the development and im9 plementation of the strategy of IFA, including— 

10 (A) the development and submission to the 

11 Board of Directors of the annual business plans 

12 and budget; 

13 (B) the development and submission to the 

14 Board of Directors of a long-term strategic 

15 plan; and 

16 (C) the development, revision, and submis17 sion to the Board of Directors of internal poli18 cies; and 

19 (2) responsibility for the management and over20 sight of the daily activities, decisions, operations, 

21 and personnel of IFA. 

22 (e) COMPENSATION.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any compensation assess24 ment or recommendation by the Chief Executive Of25 ficer under this section shall be without regard to 

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1 the provisions of chapter 51 or subchapter III of 

2 chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code. 

3 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—The compensation as4 sessment or recommendation required under this 

5 subsection shall take into account merit principles, 

6 where applicable, as well as the education, experi7 ence, level of responsibility, geographic differences, 

8 and retention and recruitment needs in determining 

9 compensation of personnel. 

10 SEC. 104. POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE BOARD OF DIREC11 TORS. 

12 The Board of Directors shall— 

13 (1) as soon as practicable after the date on 

14 which all members are appointed, approve or dis15 approve senior management appointed by the Chief 

16 Executive Officer; 

17 (2) not later than 180 days after the date on 

18 which all members are appointed— 

19 (A) develop and approve the bylaws of 

20 IFA, including bylaws for the regulation of the 

21 affairs and conduct of the business of IFA, con22 sistent with the purpose, goals, objectives, and 

23 policies set forth in this Act; 

24 (B) establish subcommittees, including an 

25 audit committee that is composed solely of 

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1 members of the Board of Directors, other than 

2 the Chief Executive Officer; 

3 (C) develop and approve, in consultation 

4 with senior management, a conflict-of-interest 

5 policy for the Board of Directors and for senior 

6 management; 

7 (D) approve or disapprove internal policies 

8 that the Chief Executive Officer shall submit to 

9 the Board of Directors, including— 

10 (i) policies regarding the loan applica11 tion and approval process, including appli12 cation procedures and project approval 

13 processes; and 

14 (ii) operational guidelines; and 

15 (E) approve or disapprove a 1-year busi16 ness plan and budget for IFA; 

17 (3) ensure that IFA is at all times operated in 

18 a manner that is consistent with this Act, by— 

19 (A) monitoring and assessing the effective20 ness of IFA in achieving its strategic goals; 

21 (B) reviewing and approving internal poli22 cies, annual business plans, annual budgets, 

23 and long-term strategies submitted by the Chief 

24 Executive Officer; 

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1 (C) reviewing and approving annual re2 ports submitted by the Chief Executive Officer; 

3 (D) engaging one or more external audi4 tors, as set forth in this Act; and 

5 (E) reviewing and approving all changes to 

6 the organization of senior management; 

7 (4) appoint and fix, by a vote of not less than 

8 5 of the 7 voting members of the Board of Direc9 tors, and without regard to the provisions of chapter 

10 51 or subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United 

11 States Code, the compensation and adjustments to 

12 compensation of all IFA personnel, provided that in 

13 appointing and fixing any compensation or adjust14 ments to compensation under this paragraph, the 

15 Board shall— 

16 (A) consult with, and seek to maintain 

17 comparability with, other comparable Federal 

18 personnel, as the Board of Directors may deter19 mine to be appropriate; 

20 (B) consult with the Office of Personnel 

21 Management; and 

22 (C) carry out those duties consistent with 

23 merit principles, where applicable, as well as the 

24 education, experience, level of responsibility, ge25 ographic differences, comparability to private 

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1 sector positions, and retention and recruitment 

2 needs in determining compensation of per3 sonnel; 

4 (5) serve as the primary liaison for IFA in 

5 interactions with Congress, the Secretary of Trans6 portation and other executive branch officials, and 

7 State and local governments, and to represent the 

8 interests of IFA in those interactions and others; 

9 (6) approve by a vote of not less than 5 of the 

10 7 voting members of the Board of Directors any 

11 changes to the bylaws or internal policies of IFA; 

12 (7) have the authority and responsibility— 

13 (A) to oversee entering into and carrying 

14 out such contracts, leases, cooperative agree15 ments, or other transactions as are necessary to 

16 carry out this Act; 

17 (B) to approve of the acquisition, lease, 

18 pledge, exchange, and disposal of real and per19 sonal property by IFA and otherwise approve 

20 the exercise by IFA of all of the usual incidents 

21 of ownership of property, to the extent that the 

22 exercise of those powers is appropriate to and 

23 consistent with the purposes of IFA; 

24 (C) to determine the character of, and the 

25 necessity for, the obligations and expenditures 

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1 of IFA, and the manner in which the obliga2 tions and expenditures will be incurred, allowed, 

3 and paid, subject to this Act and other Federal 

4 law specifically applicable to wholly owned Fed5 eral corporations; 

6 (D) to execute, in accordance with applica7 ble bylaws and regulations, appropriate instru8 ments; 

9 (E) to approve other forms of credit en10 hancement that IFA may provide to eligible 

11 projects, as long as the forms of credit enhance12 ments are consistent with the purposes of this 

13 Act and terms set forth in title II; 

14 (F) to exercise all other lawful powers 

15 which are necessary or appropriate to carry out, 

16 and are consistent with, the purposes of IFA; 

17 (G) to sue or be sued in the corporate ca18 pacity of IFA in any court of competent juris19 diction; 

20 (H) to indemnify the members of the 

21 Board of Directors and officers of IFA for any 

22 liabilities arising out of the actions of the mem23 bers and officers in that capacity, in accordance 

24 with, and subject to the limitations contained in 

25 this Act; 

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1 (I) to review all financial assistance pack2 ages to all eligible infrastructure projects, as 

3 submitted by the Chief Executive Officer and to 

4 approve, postpone, or deny the same by major5 ity vote; 

6 (J) to review all restructuring proposals 

7 submitted by the Chief Executive Officer, in8 cluding assignation, pledging, or disposal of the 

9 interest of IFA in a project, including payment 

10 or income from any interest owned or held by 

11 IFA, and to approve, postpone, or deny the 

12 same by majority vote; 

13 (K) to enter into binding commitments, as 

14 specified in approved financial assistance pack15 ages; 

16 (L) to determine whether— 

17 (i) to obtain a lien on the assets of an 

18 eligible entity that receives assistance 

19 under this Act; and 

20 (ii) to subordinate a lien under clause 

21 (i) to any other lien securing project obli22 gations; and 

23 (M) to ensure a measurable public benefit 

24 in the selection of eligible infrastructure 

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1 projects and to provide for reasonable public 

2 input in the selection of such projects; 

3 (8) delegate to the Chief Executive Officer 

4 those duties that the Board of Directors determines 

5 to be appropriate, to better carry out the powers and 

6 purposes of the Board of Directors under this sec7 tion; and 

8 (9) to approve a maximum aggregate amount of 

9 principal exposure of IFA at any given time. 

10 SEC. 105. SENIOR MANAGEMENT. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Senior management shall support 

12 the Chief Executive Officer in the discharge of the respon13 sibilities of the Chief Executive Officer. 

14 (b) APPOINTMENT OF SENIOR MANAGEMENT.—The 

15 Chief Executive Officer shall appoint such senior man16 agers as are necessary to carry out the purposes of IFA, 

17 as approved by a majority vote of the voting members of 

18 the Board of Directors, including a chief compliance offi19 cer, general counsel, chief operating officer, chief lending 

20 officer, and other positions as determined to be appro21 priate by the Chief Executive Officer and the Board of 

22 Directors. 

23 (c) TERM.—Each member of senior management 

24 shall serve at the pleasure of the Chief Executive Officer 

25 and the Board of Directors. 

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1 (d) REMOVAL OF SENIOR MANAGEMENT.—Any mem2 ber of senior management may be removed— 

3 (1) by a majority of the voting members of the 

4 Board of Directors at the request of the Chief Exec5 utive Officer; or 

6 (2) by a vote of not fewer than 5 voting mem7 bers of the Board of Directors. 

8 (e) SENIOR MANAGEMENT.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each member of senior 

10 management shall report directly to the Chief Exec11 utive Officer, other than the chief risk officer, who 

12 shall report directly to the Board of Directors. 

13 (2) CHIEF RISK OFFICER.—The chief risk offi14 cer shall be responsible for all functions of IFA re15 lating to— 

16 (A) the creation of financial, credit, and 

17 operational risk management guidelines and 

18 policies; 

19 (B) the establishment of guidelines to en20 sure diversification of lending activities by re21 gion, infrastructure project type, and project 

22 size; 

23 (C) the creation of conforming standards 

24 for infrastructure finance agreements; 

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1 (D) the monitoring of the financial, credit, 

2 and operational exposure of IFA; and 

3 (E) risk management and mitigation ac4 tions, including by reporting those actions, or 

5 recommendations of actions to be taken, di6 rectly to the Board of Directors. 

7 (f) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—No individual ap8 pointed to senior management may— 

9 (1) hold any other public office; 

10 (2) have any financial interest in an eligible in11 frastructure project then being considered by the 

12 Board of Directors, unless that interest is placed in 

13 a blind trust; or 

14 (3) have any financial interest in an investment 

15 institution or its affiliates, IFA or its affiliates, or 

16 other entity then seeking or likely to seek financial 

17 assistance for any eligible infrastructure project 

18 from IFA, unless any such interest is placed in a 

19 blind trust during the term of service of that indi20 vidual in a senior management position, and for a 

21 period of 2 years thereafter. 

22 SEC. 106. OFFICE OF TECHNICAL AND RURAL ASSISTANCE. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Executive Officer shall 

24 create and manage, within IFA, the ‘‘Office of Technical 

25 and Rural Assistance’’. 

28 

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1 (b) DUTIES.—The OTRA shall— 

2 (1) in consultation with the Secretary of Trans3 portation and the heads of other relevant Federal 

4 agencies, as determined by the Chief Executive Offi5 cer, provide technical assistance to State and local 

6 governments and parties in public-private partner7 ships in the development and financing of eligible in8 frastructure projects, including rural infrastructure 

9 projects; 

10 (2) assist the entities described in paragraph 

11 (1) with coordinating loan and loan guarantee pro12 grams available through Federal agencies, including 

13 the Department of Transportation and other Federal 

14 agencies, as appropriate; 

15 (3) work with the entities described in para16 graph (1) to identify and develop a pipeline of 

17 projects suitable for financing through innovative 

18 project financing and performance based project de19 livery, including those projects with the potential for 

20 financing through IFA; and 

21 (4) establish a regional infrastructure accel22 erator demonstration program to assist the entities 

23 described in paragraph (1) in developing improved 

24 infrastructure priorities and financing strategies, for 

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1 ture projects, including those projects with the po2 tential for financing through IFA. 

3 (c) DESIGNATION OF REGIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE

4 ACCELERATORS.—In carrying out the program estab5 lished pursuant to subsection (b)(3), the OTRA is author6 ized to designate regional infrastructure accelerators that 

7 will— 

8 (1) serve a defined geographic area; and 

9 (2) act as a resource in such area to entities de10 scribed in subsection (b)(1), in accordance with this 

11 subsection. 

12 (d) APPLICATION PROCESS.—To be eligible for a des13 ignation under subsection (c), regional infrastructure ac14 celerators shall submit a proposal to the OTRA at such 

15 time, in such form, and containing such information as 

16 the OTRA determines is appropriate. 

17 (e) CONSIDERATIONS.—In evaluating proposals sub18 mitted pursuant to subsection (d), the OTRA shall con19 sider— 

20 (1) the need for geographic diversity among re21 gional infrastructure accelerators; and 

22 (2) promoting investment in covered infrastruc23 ture projects, which shall include a plan— 

30 

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1 (A) to evaluate and promote innovative fi2 nancing methods for local projects, including 

3 the use of IFA; 

4 (B) to build capacity of governments to 

5 evaluate and structure projects involving the in6 vestment of private capital; 

7 (C) to provide technical assistance and in8 formation on best practices with respect to fi9 nancing such projects; 

10 (D) to increase transparency with respect 

11 to infrastructure project analysis and utilizing 

12 innovative financing for public infrastructure 

13 projects; 

14 (E) to deploy predevelopment capital pro15 grams designed to facilitate the creation of a 

16 pipeline of infrastructure projects available for 

17 investment; 

18 (F) to bundle smaller-scale and rural 

19 projects into larger proposals that may be more 

20 attractive for investment; and 

21 (G) to reduce transaction costs for public 

22 project sponsors. 

23 (f) ANNUAL REPORT.—The OTRA shall submit an 

24 annual report to Congress that describes the findings and 

31 

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1 effectiveness of the infrastructure accelerator demonstra2 tion program. 

3 SEC. 107. SPECIAL INSPECTOR GENERAL FOR IFA. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

5 (1) INITIAL PERIOD.—During the 5-year period 

6 beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, 

7 the Inspector General of the Department of the 

8 Treasury shall serve as the Special Inspector Gen9 eral for IFA in addition to the existing duties of the 

10 Inspector General of the Department of the Treas11 ury. 

12 (2) OFFICE OF THE SPECIAL INSPECTOR GEN13 ERAL.—Beginning on the day that is 5 years after 

14 the date of the enactment of this Act, there is estab15 lished the Office of the Special Inspector General for 

16 IFA. 

17 (b) APPOINTMENT OF INSPECTOR GENERAL; RE18 MOVAL.— 

19 (1) HEAD OF OFFICE.—The head of the Office 

20 of the Special Inspector General for IFA shall be the 

21 Special Inspector General for IFA (referred to in 

22 this Act as the ‘‘Special Inspector General’’), who 

23 shall be appointed by the President, by and with the 

24 advice and consent of the Senate. 

32 

•S 1168 IS

1 (2) BASIS OF APPOINTMENT.—The appoint2 ment of the Special Inspector General shall be made 

3 on the basis of integrity and demonstrated ability in 

4 accounting, auditing, financial analysis, law, man5 agement analysis, public administration, or inves6 tigations. 

7 (3) TIMING OF NOMINATION.—The nomination 

8 of an individual as Special Inspector General shall 

9 be made as soon as practicable after the date of en10 actment of this Act. 

11 (4) REMOVAL.—The Special Inspector General 

12 shall be removable from office in accordance with 

13 the provisions of section 3(b) of the Inspector Gen14 eral Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

15 (5) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—For purposes of 

16 section 7324 of title 5, United States Code, the Spe17 cial Inspector General shall not be considered an em18 ployee who determines policies to be pursued by the 

19 United States in the nationwide administration of 

20 Federal law. 

21 (6) RATE OF PAY.—The annual rate of basic 

22 pay of the Special Inspector General shall be the an23 nual rate of basic pay for an Inspector General 

24 under section 3(e) of the Inspector General Act of 

25 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

33 

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1 (c) DUTIES.—The Special Inspector General shall— 

2 (1) conduct, supervise, and coordinate audits 

3 and investigations of the business activities of IFA; 

4 (2) establish, maintain, and oversee such sys5 tems, procedures, and controls as the Special Inspec6 tor General considers appropriate to discharge the 

7 duty under paragraph (1); and 

8 (3) carry out any other duties and responsibil9 ities of inspectors general under the Inspector Gen10 eral Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

11 (d) POWERS AND AUTHORITIES.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the duties 

13 specified in subsection (c), the Special Inspector 

14 General shall have the authorities provided in section 

15 6 of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

16 App.). 

17 (2) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—The Special In18 spector General shall carry out the duties specified 

19 in subsection (c)(1) in accordance with section 

20 4(b)(1) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 

21 U.S.C. App.). 

22 (e) PERSONNEL, FACILITIES, AND OTHER RE23 SOURCES.— 

24 (1) ADDITIONAL OFFICERS.— 

34 

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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Special Inspector 

2 General may select, appoint, and employ such 

3 officers and employees as may be necessary for 

4 carrying out the duties of the Special Inspector 

5 General, subject to the provisions of title 5, 

6 United States Code, governing appointments in 

7 the competitive service, and the provisions of 

8 chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of 

9 such title, relating to classification and General 

10 Schedule pay rates. 

11 (B) EMPLOYMENT AND COMPENSATION.— 

12 The Special Inspector General may exercise the 

13 authorities of subsections (b) through (i) of sec14 tion 3161 of title 5, United States Code (with15 out regard to subsection (a) of that section). 

16 (2) RETENTION OF SERVICES.—The Special In17 spector General may obtain services as authorized by 

18 section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, at daily 

19 rates not to exceed the equivalent rate prescribed for 

20 grade GS–15 of the General Schedule by section 

21 5332 of such title. 

22 (3) ABILITY TO CONTRACT FOR AUDITS, STUD23 IES, AND OTHER SERVICES.—The Special Inspector 

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1 ices with public agencies and with private persons, 

2 and make such payments as may be necessary to 

3 carry out the duties of the Special Inspector Gen4 eral. 

5 (4) REQUEST FOR INFORMATION.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Upon request of the 

7 Special Inspector General for information or as8 sistance from any department, agency, or other 

9 entity of the Federal Government, the head of 

10 that entity shall, insofar as is practicable and 

11 not in contravention of any existing law, furnish 

12 the information or assistance to the Special In13 spector General or an authorized designee. 

14 (B) REFUSAL TO COMPLY.—If information 

15 or assistance requested by the Special Inspector 

16 General is, in the judgment of the Special In17 spector General, unreasonably refused or not 

18 provided, the Special Inspector General shall re19 port the circumstances to the Secretary, with20 out delay. 

21 (f) REPORTS.— 

22 (1) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 1 year 

23 after the date on which the Special Inspector Gen24 eral is confirmed, and every calendar year thereafter, 

25 the Special Inspector General shall submit to the 

36 

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1 President and appropriate committees of Congress a 

2 report summarizing the activities of the Special In3 spector General during the previous 1-year period 

4 ending on the date of that report. 

5 (2) PUBLIC DISCLOSURES.—Nothing in this 

6 subsection authorizes the public disclosure of infor7 mation that is— 

8 (A) specifically prohibited from disclosure 

9 by any other provision of law; 

10 (B) specifically required by Executive order 

11 to be protected from disclosure in the interest 

12 of national defense or national security or in 

13 the conduct of foreign affairs; or 

14 (C) a part of an ongoing criminal inves15 tigation. 

16 SEC. 108. OTHER PERSONNEL. 

17 (a) APPOINTMENT, REMOVAL, AND DEFINITION OF

18 DUTIES.—Except as otherwise provided in the bylaws of 

19 IFA, the Chief Executive Officer, in consultation with the 

20 Board of Directors, shall appoint, remove, and define the 

21 duties of such qualified personnel as are necessary to carry 

22 out the powers, duties, and purpose of IFA, other than 

23 senior management, who shall be appointed in accordance 

24 with section 105. 

37 

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1 (b) COORDINATION IN IDENTIFYING QUALIFICA2 TIONS AND EXPERTISE.—In appointing qualified per3 sonnel pursuant to subsection (a), the Chief Executive Of4 ficer shall coordinate with, and seek assistance from, the 

5 Secretary of Transportation in identifying the appropriate 

6 qualifications and expertise in infrastructure project fi7 nance. 

8 SEC. 109. COMPLIANCE. 

9 The provision of assistance by IFA pursuant to this 

10 Act does not supersede any provision of State law or regu11 lation otherwise applicable to an eligible infrastructure 

12 project. 

13 TITLE II—TERMS AND LIMITA14 TIONS ON DIRECT LOANS AND 

15 LOAN GUARANTEES 

16 SEC. 201. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR ASSISTANCE FROM 

17 IFA AND TERMS AND LIMITATIONS OF LOANS. 

18 (a) PUBLIC BENEFIT; FINANCEABILITY.—A project 

19 is not be eligible for financial assistance from IFA under 

20 this Act if— 

21 (1) the use or purpose of such project is private 

22 or such project does not create a public benefit, as 

23 determined by the Board of Directors; or 

24 (2) the applicant is unable to demonstrate, to 

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•S 1168 IS

1 cient revenue stream to finance the loan that will be 

2 used to pay for such project. 

3 (b) FINANCIAL CRITERIA.—If the project meets the 

4 requirements under subsection (a), an applicant for finan5 cial assistance under this Act shall demonstrate, to the 

6 satisfaction of the Board of Directors, that— 

7 (1) for public-private partnerships, the project 

8 has received contributed capital or commitments for 

9 contributed capital equal to not less than 10 percent 

10 of the total cost of the eligible infrastructure project 

11 for which assistance is being sought if such contrib12 uted capital includes— 

13 (A) equity; 

14 (B) deeply subordinate loans or other cred15 it and debt instruments, which shall be junior 

16 to any IFA assistance provided for the project; 

17 (C) appropriated funds or grants from gov18 ernmental sources other than the Federal Gov19 ernment; or 

20 (D) irrevocable private contributions of 

21 funds, grants, property (including rights-of22 way), and other assets that directly reduce or 

23 offset project costs; and 

24 (2) the eligible infrastructure project for which 

25 assistance is being sought— 

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1 (A) is not for the refinancing of an exist2 ing infrastructure project; and 

3 (B) meets— 

4 (i) any pertinent requirements set 

5 forth in this Act; 

6 (ii) any criteria established by the 

7 Board of Directors under subsection (c) or 

8 by the Chief Executive Officer in accord9 ance with this Act; and 

10 (iii) the definition of an eligible infra11 structure project. 

12 (c) CONSIDERATIONS.—The criteria established by 

13 the Board of Directors under this subsection shall provide 

14 adequate consideration of— 

15 (1) the economic, financial, technical, environ16 mental, and public benefits and costs of each eligible 

17 infrastructure project under consideration for finan18 cial assistance under this Act, prioritizing eligible in19 frastructure projects that— 

20 (A) demonstrate a clear and measurable 

21 public benefit; 

22 (B) offer value for money to taxpayers; 

23 (C) contribute to regional or national eco24 nomic growth; 

25 (D) lead to long-term job creation; and 

40 

•S 1168 IS

1 (E) mitigate environmental concerns; 

2 (2) the means by which development of the eli3 gible infrastructure project under consideration is 

4 being financed, including— 

5 (A) the terms, conditions, and structure of 

6 the proposed financing; 

7 (B) the creditworthiness and standing of 

8 the project sponsors, providers of equity, and 

9 cofinanciers; 

10 (C) the financial assumptions and projec11 tions on which the eligible infrastructure project 

12 is based; and 

13 (D) whether there is sufficient State or 

14 municipal political support for the successful 

15 completion of the eligible infrastructure project; 

16 (3) the likelihood that the provision of assist17 ance by IFA will cause the development to proceed 

18 more promptly and with lower costs for financing 

19 than would be the case without IFA assistance; 

20 (4) the extent to which the provision of assist21 ance by IFA maximizes the level of private invest22 ment in the eligible infrastructure project or sup23 ports a public-private partnership, while providing a 

24 significant public benefit; 

41 

•S 1168 IS

1 (5) the extent to which the provision of assist2 ance by IFA can mobilize the participation of other 

3 financing partners in the eligible infrastructure 

4 project; 

5 (6) the technical and operational viability of the 

6 eligible infrastructure project; 

7 (7) the proportion of financial assistance from 

8 IFA; 

9 (8) the geographical location of the project, 

10 prioritizing geographical diversity of projects funded 

11 by IFA; 

12 (9) the size of the project and the impact of the 

13 project on the resources of IFA; and 

14 (10) the infrastructure sector of the project, 

15 prioritizing projects from more than 1 sector funded 

16 by IFA. 

17 (d) APPLICATION.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any eligible entity seeking 

19 assistance from IFA under this Act for an eligible 

20 infrastructure project shall submit an application to 

21 IFA at such time, in such manner, and containing 

22 such information as the Board of Directors or the 

23 Chief Executive Officer may require. 

24 (2) REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.— 

42 

•S 1168 IS

1 (A) IN GENERAL.—IFA shall review appli2 cations for assistance under this Act on an on3 going basis. 

4 (B) PREPARATION.—The Chief Executive 

5 Officer, in cooperation with the senior manage6 ment, shall prepare eligible infrastructure 

7 projects for review and approval by the Board 

8 of Directors. 

9 (3) DEDICATED REVENUE SOURCES.—The Fed10 eral credit instrument shall be repayable, in whole or 

11 in part, from tolls, user fees, or other dedicated rev12 enue sources derived from users or beneficiaries that 

13 also secure the eligible infrastructure project obliga14 tions. 

15 (e) ELIGIBLE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT COSTS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para17 graph (2), to be eligible for assistance under this 

18 Act, an eligible infrastructure project shall have 

19 project costs that are reasonably anticipated to equal 

20 or exceed $50,000,000. 

21 (2) RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.—To 

22 be eligible for assistance under this Act a rural in23 frastructure project shall have project costs that are 

24 reasonably anticipated to equal or exceed 

25 $10,000,000. 

43 

•S 1168 IS

1 (f) LOAN ELIGIBILITY AND MAXIMUM AMOUNTS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of a direct loan 

3 or loan guarantee under this Act shall not exceed 

4 the lesser of— 

5 (A) 49 percent of the reasonably antici6 pated eligible infrastructure project costs; and 

7 (B) the amount of the senior project obli8 gations, if the direct loan or loan guarantee 

9 does not receive an investment grade rating. 

10 (2) MAXIMUM ANNUAL LOAN AND LOAN GUAR11 ANTEE VOLUME.—The aggregate amount of direct 

12 loans and loan guarantees made by IFA shall not 

13 exceed— 

14 (A) during the first 2 fiscal years of the 

15 operations of IFA, $10,000,000,000 per year; 

16 (B) during fiscal years 3 through 9 of the 

17 operations of IFA, $20,000,000,000 per year; 

18 and 

19 (C) during any fiscal year thereafter, 

20 $50,000,000,000. 

21 SEC. 202. LOAN TERMS AND REPAYMENT. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—A direct loan or loan guarantee 

23 under this Act with respect to an eligible infrastructure 

24 project shall be on such terms, subject to such conditions, 

25 and contain such covenants, representations, warranties, 

44 

•S 1168 IS

1 and requirements (including requirements for audits) as 

2 the Chief Executive Officer determines appropriate. 

3 (b) TERMS.—A direct loan or loan guarantee under 

4 this Act— 

5 (1) shall— 

6 (A) be payable, in whole or in part, from 

7 tolls, user fees, or other dedicated revenue 

8 sources derived from users or beneficiaries; and 

9 (B) include a rate covenant, coverage re10 quirement, or similar security feature sup11 porting the project obligations; and 

12 (2) may be secured by a lien— 

13 (A) on the assets of the obligor, including 

14 revenues described in paragraph (1); and 

15 (B) which may be subordinated to any 

16 other lien securing project obligations. 

17 (c) BASE INTEREST RATE.—The base interest rate 

18 on a direct loan under this Act shall be not less than the 

19 yield on Treasury obligations of a similar maturity to the 

20 maturity of the direct loan on the date of execution of 

21 the loan agreement. 

22 (d) RISK ASSESSMENT.—Before entering into an 

23 agreement for assistance under this Act, the Chief Execu24 tive Officer, in consultation with the Director of the Office 

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1 viding a preliminary rating opinion letter under this sec2 tion, shall determine an appropriate Federal credit subsidy 

3 amount for each direct loan and loan guarantee, taking 

4 into account that preliminary rating opinion letter, as well 

5 as any comparable market rates available for such a loan 

6 or loan guarantee, should any exist. 

7 (e) CREDIT FEE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to each agree9 ment for assistance under this Act, the Chief Execu10 tive Officer shall charge a credit fee to the recipient 

11 of that assistance to pay for, over time, all or a por12 tion of the Federal credit subsidy determined under 

13 subsection (d), with the remainder paid by the ac14 count established for IFA. 

15 (2) DIRECT LOANS.—In the case of a direct 

16 loan, the credit fee described in paragraph (1) shall 

17 be in addition to the base interest rate established 

18 under subsection (c). 

19 (f) MATURITY DATE.—The final maturity date of a 

20 direct loan or loan guaranteed by IFA under this Act shall 

21 be not later than 35 years after the date of substantial 

22 completion of the eligible infrastructure project, as deter23 mined by the Chief Executive Officer. 

24 (g) PRELIMINARY RATING OPINION LETTER.— 

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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Executive Officer 

2 shall require each applicant for assistance under this 

3 Act to provide a preliminary rating opinion letter 

4 from at least 1 rating agency, indicating that the 

5 senior obligations of the eligible infrastructure 

6 project, which may be the Federal credit instrument, 

7 have the potential to achieve an investment-grade 

8 rating. 

9 (2) RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.—With 

10 respect to a rural infrastructure project, a rating 

11 agency opinion letter described in paragraph (1) 

12 shall not be required, except that the loan or loan 

13 guarantee shall receive an internal rating score, 

14 using methods similar to the rating agencies gen15 erated by IFA, measuring the proposed direct loan 

16 or loan guarantee against comparable direct loans or 

17 loan guarantees of similar credit quality in a similar 

18 sector. 

19 (h) INVESTMENT-GRADE RATING REQUIREMENT.— 

20 (1) LOANS AND LOAN GUARANTEES.—The exe21 cution of a direct loan or loan guarantee under this 

22 Act shall be contingent on the senior obligations of 

23 the eligible infrastructure project receiving an invest24 ment-grade rating. 

47 

•S 1168 IS

1 (2) RATING OF IFA OVERALL PORTFOLIO.—The 

2 average rating of the overall portfolio of IFA shall 

3 be not less than investment grade after 5 years of 

4 operation. 

5 (i) TERMS AND REPAYMENT OF DIRECT LOANS.— 

6 (1) SCHEDULE.—The Chief Executive Officer 

7 shall establish a repayment schedule for each direct 

8 loan under this Act, based on the projected cash 

9 flow from eligible infrastructure project revenues 

10 and other repayment sources. 

11 (2) COMMENCEMENT.—Scheduled loan repay12 ments of principal or interest on a direct loan under 

13 this Act shall commence not later than 5 years after 

14 the date of substantial completion of the eligible in15 frastructure project, as determined by the Chief Ex16 ecutive Officer of IFA. 

17 (3) DEFERRED PAYMENTS OF DIRECT

18 LOANS.— 

19 (A) AUTHORIZATION.—If, at any time 

20 after the date of substantial completion of an 

21 eligible infrastructure project assisted under 

22 this Act, the eligible infrastructure project is 

23 unable to generate sufficient revenues to pay 

24 the scheduled loan repayments of principal and 

25 interest on the direct loan under this Act, the 

48 

•S 1168 IS

1 Chief Executive Officer may allow the obligor to 

2 add unpaid principal and interest to the out3 standing balance of the direct loan, if the result 

4 would benefit the taxpayer. 

5 (B) INTEREST.—Any payment deferred 

6 under subparagraph (A) shall— 

7 (i) continue to accrue interest, in ac8 cordance with the terms of the obligation, 

9 until fully repaid; and 

10 (ii) be scheduled to be amortized over 

11 the remaining term of the loan. 

12 (C) CRITERIA.— 

13 (i) IN GENERAL.—Any payment defer14 ral under subparagraph (A) shall be con15 tingent on the eligible infrastructure 

16 project meeting criteria established by the 

17 Board of Directors. 

18 (ii) REPAYMENT STANDARDS.—The 

19 criteria established under clause (i) shall 

20 include standards for reasonable assurance 

21 of repayment. 

22 (4) PREPAYMENT OF DIRECT LOANS.— 

23 (A) USE OF EXCESS REVENUES.—Any ex24 cess revenues that remain after satisfying 

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•S 1168 IS

1 gible infrastructure project obligations and di2 rect loan and all deposit requirements under the 

3 terms of any trust agreement, bond resolution, 

4 or similar agreement securing project obliga5 tions under this Act may be applied annually to 

6 prepay the direct loan, without penalty. 

7 (B) USE OF PROCEEDS OF REFI8 NANCING.—A direct loan under this Act may be 

9 prepaid at any time, without penalty, from the 

10 proceeds of refinancing from non-Federal fund11 ing sources. 

12 (j) LOAN GUARANTEES.—The terms of a loan guar13 anteed by IFA under this Act shall be consistent with the 

14 terms set forth in this section for a direct loan, except 

15 that the rate on the guaranteed loan and any payment, 

16 prepayment, or refinancing features shall be negotiated 

17 between the obligor and the lender (as defined in section 

18 601(a) of title 23, United States Code) with the consent 

19 of the Chief Executive Officer. 

20 (k) COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL CREDIT REFORM

21 ACT OF 1990.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para23 graph (2), direct loans and loan guarantees author24 ized by this Act shall be subject to the provisions of 

50 

•S 1168 IS

1 the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 

2 661 et seq.). 

3 (2) EXCEPTION.—Section 504(b) of the Federal 

4 Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661c(b)) shall 

5 not apply to a loan or loan guarantee under this 

6 Act. 

7 (l) POLICY OF CONGRESS.—It is the policy of Con8 gress that IFA shall only make a direct loan or loan guar9 antee under this Act if IFA determines that IFA is rea10 sonably expected to recover the full amount of the direct 

11 loan or loan guarantee. 

12 SEC. 203. PROJECT DELIVERY TASK FORCE. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

14 IFA the Project Delivery Task Force, which shall be over15 seen by the Chief Executive Officer. 

16 (b) FUNCTIONS.—If an eligible infrastructure project 

17 receives financing from IFA, or the Chief Executive Offi18 cer, after reviewing an application for such financing, de19 termines that such a project will be approved, the Task 

20 Force, in close consultation with appropriate permitting 

21 agencies, shall— 

22 (1) establish or update a permitting timetable 

23 for the proposed project, which ensures that the en24 vironmental review process is completed as soon as 

25 practicable; 

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•S 1168 IS

1 (2) coordinate concurrent permitting reviews by 

2 all necessary agencies; and 

3 (3) coordinate with relevant State agencies and 

4 regional infrastructure development agencies to en5 sure— 

6 (A) adequate participation; and 

7 (B) the timely provision of necessary docu8 mentation to allow any State review to proceed 

9 without delay. 

10 (c) CONCURRENT REVIEWS.—Each agency, to the 

11 greatest extent permitted by law, shall— 

12 (1) carry out the obligations of the agency 

13 under other applicable law concurrently, and in con14 junction with other reviews being conducted by other 

15 participating agencies, including environmental re16 views required under the National Environmental 

17 Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), unless such 

18 concurrent reviews would impair the ability of the 

19 agency to carry out its statutory obligations; and 

20 (2) formulate and implement administrative, 

21 policy, and procedural mechanisms to enable the 

22 agency to ensure the completion of the environ23 mental review process in a timely, coordinated, and 

24 environmentally responsible manner. 

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1 SEC. 204. COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT. 

2 (a) CREDIT AGREEMENT.—Notwithstanding any 

3 other provision of law, each eligible entity that receives 

4 assistance under this Act shall enter into a credit agree5 ment that requires such entity to comply with all applica6 ble policies and procedures of IFA, in addition to all other 

7 provisions of the loan agreement. 

8 (b) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL LAWS.—Each eligi9 ble entity that receives assistance under this Act shall pro10 vide written assurance, in such form and manner and con11 taining such terms as are to be prescribed by IFA, that 

12 the eligible infrastructure project will be performed in 

13 compliance with the requirements of all Federal laws that 

14 would otherwise apply to similar projects to which the 

15 United States is a party, or financed in whole or in part 

16 from Federal funds or in accordance with guarantees of 

17 a Federal agency or financed from funds obtained by 

18 pledge of any contract of a Federal agency to make a loan, 

19 grant, or annual contribution (except where a different 

20 meaning is expressly indicated). 

21 (c) IFA AUTHORITY ON NONCOMPLIANCE.—In any 

22 case in which an eligible entity that receives assistance 

23 under this Act is materially out of compliance with the 

24 loan agreement, or any applicable policy or procedure of 

25 IFA, the Board of Directors may take action— 

26 (1) to cancel unused loan amounts; or 

53 

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1 (2) to accelerate the repayment terms of any 

2 outstanding obligation. 

3 SEC. 205. AUDITS; REPORTS TO THE PRESIDENT AND CON4 GRESS. 

5 (a) ACCOUNTING.—The books of account of IFA 

6 shall be— 

7 (1) maintained in accordance with generally ac8 cepted accounting principles; and 

9 (2) subject to an annual audit by independent 

10 public accountants of nationally recognized standing 

11 appointed by the Board of Directors. 

12 (b) REPORTS.— 

13 (1) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—Not later than 90 

14 days after the last day of each fiscal year, the Board 

15 of Directors shall submit to the President and Con16 gress a complete and detailed report with respect to 

17 the preceding fiscal year, setting forth— 

18 (A) a summary of the operations of IFA 

19 for that fiscal year; 

20 (B) a schedule of the obligations of IFA 

21 and capital securities outstanding at the end of 

22 that fiscal year, with a statement of the 

23 amounts issued and redeemed or paid during 

24 that fiscal year; 

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1 (C) the status of eligible infrastructure 

2 projects receiving funding or other assistance 

3 pursuant to this Act during that fiscal year, in4 cluding— 

5 (i) all nonperforming loans; and 

6 (ii) disclosure of all entities with a de7 velopment, ownership, or operational inter8 est in those eligible infrastructure projects; 

9 (D) a description of the successes and 

10 challenges encountered in lending to rural com11 munities, including the role of the Office of 

12 Technical and Rural Assistance established 

13 under this Act; and 

14 (E) an assessment of the risks of the port15 folio of IFA, which shall be prepared by an 

16 independent source. 

17 (2) GAO.—Not later than 5 years after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller Gen19 eral of the United States shall conduct an evaluation 

20 of, and submit to the Committee on Commerce, 

21 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and to 

22 the Committees on Transportation and Infrastruc23 ture and Energy and Commerce of the House of 

24 Representatives a report on the activities of IFA for 

25 the fiscal years covered by the report that includes— 

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1 (A) an assessment of the impact and bene2 fits of each funded eligible infrastructure 

3 project, including a review of how effectively 

4 each eligible infrastructure project accomplished 

5 the goals prioritized by the eligible infrastruc6 ture project criteria of IFA; and 

7 (B) an evaluation of the effectiveness of, 

8 and challenges facing, loan programs at the De9 partment of Transportation and Department of 

10 Energy, and an analysis of the advisability of 

11 consolidating those programs within IFA. 

12 (c) BOOKS AND RECORDS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—IFA shall maintain adequate 

14 books and records to support the financial trans15 actions of IFA, with a description of financial trans16 actions and eligible infrastructure projects receiving 

17 funding, and the amount of funding for each project 

18 maintained on a publically accessible database. 

19 (2) AUDITS BY THE SECRETARY AND GAO.— 

20 The books and records of IFA shall at all times be 

21 open to inspection by the Secretary, the Special In22 spector General, and the Comptroller General of the 

23 United States. 

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1 SEC. 206. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. 

2 Nothing in this Act may be construed to affect or 

3 alter the responsibility of an eligible entity that receives 

4 assistance under this Act to comply with applicable Fed5 eral and State laws (including regulations) relating to an 

6 eligible infrastructure project. 

7 TITLE III—FUNDING OF IFA 

8 SEC. 301. FEES. 

9 The Chief Executive Officer shall establish fees with 

10 respect to loans and loan guarantees under this Act that— 

11 (1) are sufficient to cover all the administrative 

12 costs to the Federal Government for the operations 

13 of IFA; 

14 (2) may be in the form of an application or 

15 transaction fee, or interest rate adjustment; and 

16 (3) may be based on the risk premium associ17 ated with the loan or loan guarantee, taking into 

18 consideration— 

19 (A) the price of Treasury obligations of a 

20 similar maturity; 

21 (B) prevailing market conditions; 

22 (C) the ability of the eligible infrastructure 

23 project to support the loan or loan guarantee; 

24 and 

25 (D) the total amount of the loan or loan 

26 guarantee. 

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1 SEC. 302. SELF-SUFFICIENCY OF IFA. 

2 The Chief Executive Officer shall, to the extent prac3 ticable, take actions consistent with this Act to make IFA 

4 a self-sustaining entity, with administrative costs and Fed5 eral credit subsidy costs fully funded by fees and risk pre6 miums on loans and loan guarantees. 

7 SEC. 303. FUNDING. 

8 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

10 appropriated to IFA to make direct loans and loan 

11 guarantees under this Act $10,000,000,000, which 

12 shall remain available until expended. 

13 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the amounts 

14 appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1), the IFA 

15 may expend, for administrative costs, not more 

16 than— 

17 (A) $25,000,000 for each of the fiscal 

18 years 2016 and 2017; and 

19 (B) not more than $50,000,000 for fiscal 

20 year 2018. 

21 (b) INTEREST.—The amounts made available to IFA 

22 pursuant to subsection (a) shall be placed in interest-bear23 ing accounts. 

24 (c) RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.—Of the 

25 amounts made available to IFA under this section, not less 

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1 than 5 percent shall be used to offset subsidy costs associ2 ated with rural infrastructure projects. 

3 SEC. 304. CONTRACT AUTHORITY. 

4 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, approval 

5 by the Board of Directors of a Federal credit instrument 

6 that uses funds made available under this Act shall impose 

7 upon the United States a contractual obligation to fund 

8 the Federal credit investment. 

9 SEC. 305. LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY. 

10 IFA shall not have the authority to issue debt in its 

11 own name. 

12 TITLE IV—TAX EXEMPTION RE13 QUIREMENTS FOR STATE AND 

14 LOCAL BONDS 

15 SEC. 401. NATIONAL LIMITATION ON AMOUNT OF TAX-EX16 EMPT FINANCING FOR FACILITIES. 

17 Section 142(m)(2)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code 

18 of 1986 is amended by striking ‘‘$15,000,000,000’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘$16,000,000,000’’. 

20 TITLE V—BUDGETARY EFFECTS 

21 SEC. 501. BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 

22 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 

23 complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 

24 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 

25 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 

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1 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 

2 by the Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, pro3 vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 

4 vote on passage. 

Æ