2nd try set on credit for Cuba

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford on Friday reintroduced legislation that would allow farmers to extend credit to Cuban clients, a move favored by Arkansas rice producers, chicken growers and other agricultural groups.

With former President Fidel Castro gone and the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump nearing, supporters are hopeful that the Cold War-related restrictions on commerce finally will be lifted.

"I think what you're going to see is a groundswell that continues to build," said Crawford, a Republican from Jonesboro.

Crawford also co-sponsors legislation introduced Wednesday by U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., that would end the half-century-old trade embargo.

Thursday, the Arkansas Farm Bureau and Arkansas Rice Council joined scores of other organizations in urging Trump to allow free trade between the two nations. The letter asked the New York Republican to remove business barriers, emphasizing the need for the agricultural credit ban to be removed.

One day later, Crawford filed HR525, the Cuba Agricultural Exports Act, listing more than two dozen co-sponsors.

"We have just a tremendous amount of support in the ag industry, almost 100 percent across-the-board support for this," said Crawford.

The legislation mirrors similar legislation that he filed last year. "It's virtually identical. For all intents and purposes, it's the same bill," he said.

Opposition, especially from leaders in the Cuban-American community, kept it from advancing last year.

But two developments in November may help break the impasse: On Nov. 8, Trump was elected president and on Nov. 25, Castro, Cuba's top communist revolutionary, died.

"I think you're dealing with a whole new set of variables and a whole new dynamic in both nations," Crawford said.

He's hoping that, come Friday, the White House will back his bill.

"Donald Trump, President Trump, he's a businessman. He recognizes a good opportunity when he sees one and I think he'll view it in that context and I think we'll be able to move this thing," he said.

The federal government now bars farmers from extending credit to Cuban purchasers. As a result, Cubans must provide "cash in advance" whenever they purchase U.S. agricultural products. Crawford's legislation would allow credit to be extended.

The legislation also would allow Americans to invest in Cuban agricultural businesses that are not controlled by the government there.

Those extending credit or making investments wouldn't get bailed out by the U.S. government if the bills go unpaid or the ventures fail.

"There's no taxpayer backstop on this. The U.S. government is not going to subsidize these business transactions with private sector entities," Crawford said. "If an American entity wants to take that risk, they'll have the flexibility and the freedom to do that now. ... It's not the taxpayer who will be on the hook for it. It's strictly the private sector at work. "

Increased trade, Crawford says, would benefit Arkansas businesses.

The state produces roughly half of the nation's rice, and most of that is grown in Crawford's district. Arkansas also is one of the country's largest poultry producers, along with Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina.

Chicken and rice are dietary staples in Cuba, population 11.3 million, and Natural State farmers say they are eager to do business there.

Before the rise of Castro, the U.S. was a major supplier of rice to Cuba. But the trade ended with the implementation of an economic embargo by the United States in the early 1960s.

Restrictions on the sale of certain agricultural products were eased during President Bill Clinton's administration, and by 2004 U.S. rice sales reached $64 million. The exports ended, however, after the U.S. government barred farmers from extending credit to Cuban purchasers.

Over the past two years, President Barack Obama has taken steps to normalize relations between the United States and its communist neighbor, opening an embassy in Havana, adding daily flights, removing barriers to travel and allowing increased imports of Cuban cigars and rum.

This week, Obama also announced that he would end federal policies that allowed any Cuban setting foot in the United States to stay.

The prohibition on agriculture credit, however, remains.

Friday, agricultural leaders said they're eager to compete in a country that imports $2 billion in agricultural products every year.

"We want to see trade with Cuba. We think it's a great market for us, so we're doing everything we can to try to get that trade opened up," said Arkansas Farm Bureau President Randy Veach.

For trade to flourish, however, the prohibitions on credit must be lifted, he said. "That's one of the basic things that we've got to get done. It's actually one of the most important things," he added.

James Williams, president of Engage Cuba, said Thursday's letter to Trump shows that there is broad support for increasing trade between the two countries.

The Washington-based nonprofit group, which has made ending the credit ban one of its policy priorities, describes itself as "the leading coalition of private companies and organizations working to end the travel and trade embargo in Cuba."

"The American agriculture community, and Arkansas is a leader in this, is unified in pushing President-elect Trump to support American agriculture by maintaining and expanding trade in Cuba," he said.

Williams said his coalition was "firmly supportive" of Crawford's legislation when it was introduced the first time and will continue to work to eliminate barriers to U.S. agriculture sales in Cuba.

A Section on 01/14/2017