AIA Appeals to Senate Leaders To Act on Ex-Im Noms

The Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) is continuing to press Capitol Hill to move on nominations to the U.S. Export-Import Bank board of directors, telling Senate leaders in a letter this week that the lack of a fully functioning bank is reverberating throughout aircraft production lines.

AIA president and CEO Eric Fanning sent the February 25 letter, saying, “We must restore the full functionality of Ex-Im to strengthen America’s competitiveness around the world.” The five-member board currently has four vacant slots and has lacked the requisite three members for a quorum since 2015. A quorum is required for financing approval of sales exceeding $10 million.

“For four years, across two different administrations and with bipartisan and bicameral support, we have advocated for a quorum that would enable Ex-Im to approve export deals vital to our export ecosystem,” Fanning Added. “And for four years, we have repeatedly encountered political roadblocks that have prevented the effective use of this economic tool that supports our country’s global competitiveness.”

He appealed to the Senate leadership to move the four current nominees to the board quickly through committee and to the floor to a vote. The nominees—Kimberly Reed, Spencer Bachus, Claudia Slacik, and Judith Delzoppo Pryor—are “overwhelmingly supported by business, government, and other stakeholders and deserve an opportunity on the floor,” he said.