An Agency Left in Limbo as Authority Expires

The determined effort by some Republicans in Congress to defund the Export-Import Bank has left much of the agency’s staff cramped in their ability to work with industry, the press and public. As of Wednesday, the bank’s charter expired. The Ex-Im Bank—which critics view as corporate welfare due to its loans to entities such as Boeing and China’s nuclear power authority—acknowledged the situation by splashing a notice on its website: "Authority Has Lapsed."

The lapse means “the bank and any of its delegated authority lenders cannot authorize any new transactions,” says a statement from senior vice president and general counsel Angela Mariana Freyre. “All preexisting loans, guarantees and insurance policies will continue in full force and effect. We will process and close all previously approved transactions, which will also continue in full force and effect according to their terms.”

The bank is not in shutdown mode, however. “We are fully appropriated through FY2015 and will be able to continue operating after July 1, 2015,” Freyre’s statement said.