Export-Import Bank of the United States Chair Reta Jo Lewis, Director Owen Herrnstadt Address United Steelworkers Executive Board in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh – Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) President and Chair Reta Jo Lewis and Owen Herrnstadt, a member of EXIM’s Board of Directors, this week spoke before the United Steelworkers (USW) International Executive Board in Pittsburgh, Pa., the first time the head of EXIM has addressed the USW board. During their remarks, Chair Lewis and Director Herrnstadt discussed EXIM’s Make More in America initiative, which supports export-oriented U.S. domestic manufacturing projects and the agency’s role in supporting U.S. exporters and the jobs they create.
“EXIM is playing an important role rebuilding our nation's infrastructure and supply chains by fulfilling our mandate to ensure goods and services produced by the American people are the first choice of consumers across the global marketplace,” said Chair Lewis. “I am grateful for the historic opportunity to be the first EXIM President and Chair to address the United Steelworkers International Executive Board about the ways our financing tools support domestic infrastructure investments and manufacturers as they create, sustain, and maintain American jobs on our shores.”
"Having spent nearly 35 years working for organized labor, it is an honor to be invited to speak before the USW Executive Board,” said Owen Herrnstadt, Member of the EXIM Board of Directors. “EXIM's mission to support U.S. jobs by supporting U.S. exporters could not be more important today as we work to bring supply chains home and rebuild our manufacturing base, which is so vital to our national and economic security."
“USW members work in a wide array of industries, proudly supplying the goods and services our nation needs to promote its critical infrastructure and national security,” said USW International President Tom Conway. “We were pleased to welcome the EXIM leadership as they seek to foster job growth and economic opportunity.”
Last month, Chair Lewis and Director Herrnstadt met with USW International President Tom Conway during a visit to Pittsburgh. In February, EXIM’s Board of Directors approved the renewal of a guarantee of a $200 million purchase facility for the United States Steel Corporation. This transaction supports 700 jobs in states across the country, including Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia, New Jersey, Illinois, Alabama, Missouri, Indiana, and Texas.
ABOUT EXIM:
The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) is the nation’s official export credit agency with the mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating U.S. exports. To advance American competitiveness and assist U.S. businesses as they compete for global sales, EXIM offers financing including export credit insurance, working capital guarantees, loan guarantees, and direct loans. As an independent federal agency, EXIM contributes to U.S. economic growth by supporting tens of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt. Learn more at www.exim.gov.
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