A federal loan guarantee program for businesses that export goods could expire later this month, but two U.S. senators are campaigning in Wisconsin to save the program.
Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., toured Prolitec, a Milwaukee-based technology firm that also has employees in Seattle, on Monday. Cantwell said if the federal Export-Import Bank is not reauthorized within two weeks, U.S. jobs will be at risk.
“The Export-Import Bank provides support to U.S. exporters when the private sector doesn’t, so we want to make sure businesses like Prolitec get the tools they need to compete in the marketplace,” said Cantwell.
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Cantwell and Baldwin also said the Export-Import Bank earns revenue for the U.S. Treasury. Some conservatives in Congress claim the Bank provides too much help for large companies that don’t need the assistance, but Baldwin said most of the 218 Wisconsin firms aided since 2007 qualify as small businesses.
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