Dear Representative:
With the FY04 budget deficit approaching $500 billion, the corporate welfare hidden in H.R. 2800, the Foreign Operations Appropriation bill of FY04 is offensive to taxpayers. Two programs in particular hand out as much as $85.7 million under the guise of development programs, and Taxpayers for Common Sense Action (TCS Action) urges you to remove them from H.R.2800.
Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC): OPIC provides low-cost financing and insurance to U.S. companies investing in foreign markets. It is unnecessary corporate welfare because it provides risk insurance and loans to major corporations that compete with those from the private sector and other governments. According to its website, OPIC's clients include Coca-Cola, General Motors, McDonald's, and Enron. As of 2000, OPIC carried more than $3 billion in potential loan liability and more for its insurance policies. Furthermore, the committee report expresses concern about OPIC's coordination with other development agencies in the U.S. government that provide assistance on varied different terms. H.R. 2800 provides more than $65 million to this questionable program.
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA): MIGA is a World Bank group that was established to provide insurance against political risks including war, expropriation, and currency inconvertibility, for private corporations and banks investing in developing countries. Instead of alleviating poverty by promoting growth, the corporate subsidy has helped pad the bottom lines of giant businesses like Mitsubishi, Ericsson, and Ingersoll-Rand. H.R. 2800 provides $4 million for this agency, and the authority to call an additional $16.3 million in capital subscriptions.
Taxpayers for Common Sense Action urges you to cut these programs in H.R. 2800, the Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill. In a time of fiscal crisis, corporate handouts are clearly an irresponsible way to spend taxpayers' money.
Sincerely,
Jill Lancelot,
President and Co-Founder
Weekly Email
