To provide for the establishment of the Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund to promote small business and microcredit lending and housing construction and reconstruction for Kosova.

June 18, 2003

Mr. ENGEL (for himself, Mrs. KELLY, Mr. OLVER, Mr. KIRK, Mr. MCGOVERN, and Mr. TOWNS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations

To provide for the establishment of the Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund to promote small business and microcredit lending and housing construction and reconstruction for Kosova.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund Act of 2003'.

SEC. 2. KOSOVAR-AMERICAN ENTERPRISE FUND.

Chapter 1 of part III of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2351 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 601 the following new section:

`SEC. 601A. KOSOVAR-AMERICAN ENTERPRISE FUND.

`(a) PURPOSE- The purpose of this section is to promote the development of small- and medium-sized businesses in Kosova through--

`(1) loans;

`(2) microcredit lending;

`(3) grants;

`(4) equity investments;

`(5) insurance; and

`(6) loan guarantees.

`(b) DESIGNATION OF ENTERPRISE FUND-

`(1) DESIGNATION- The President is authorized to designate 1 private, nonprofit organization (to be known for purposes of this section as the `Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund') as eligible to receive funds and support under this section upon a determination by the President that the organization has been established for the purpose described in subsection (a).

`(2) CONSULTATION WITH CONGRESS- Before designating an organization under paragraph (1), the President shall consult with--

`(A) the majority leader and minority leader of the Senate; and

`(B) the Speaker and minority leader of the House of Representatives.

`(3) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS- Paragraphs (3) through (5) of section 201(d) of the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 (22 U.S.C. 5421(d)) shall apply to the Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund.

`(c) GRANT TO ENTERPRISE FUND- The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development shall, from amounts appropriated under subsection (e), provide a grant to the Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund, which shall be used to--

`(1) carry out the purpose described in subsection (a); and

`(2) pay the administrative expenses of the fund.

`(d) TREATMENT EQUIVALENT TO ENTERPRISE FUNDS FOR POLAND AND HUNGARY- Except to the extent inconsistent with the provisions of this section, subsections (f) through (p) of section 201 of the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 (22 U.S.C. 5421) shall apply to the Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund to the same extent and in the same manner as such subsections apply to the Polish-American Enterprise Fund and the Hungarian-American Enterprise Fund.

`(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS-

`(1) IN GENERAL- There are authorized to be appropriated to the President to carry out this section $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2004.

`(2) AVAILABILITY- Amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1) shall remain available until expended.

`(3) NONAPPLICABILITY OF OTHER LAWS- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1) may be expended by the Kosovar-American Enterprise Fund for the purposes of this section .'.

END