Job Creators In Florida Hurt After 100 Days Without Ex-Im

Today marks 100 days since Congress allowed the Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank to expire. Ex-Im’s lapse has made it more difficult for businesses around the country to compete in the international arena, putting thousands of U.S. jobs in jeopardy. Many of these jobs are in the state of Florida, where the Ex-Im Bank has played a key role in helping companies seize opportunities to grow.

As former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour stated on South Florida’s WFTL 850 radio, “this is about jobs in our economy and small businesses.”

Since 2007 in Florida, Ex-Im has supported:

• $8.17 billion in export sales
• 872 companies
• 52,230  jobs

Ex-Im plays a key role in supporting Florida jobs, which is why The Tampa Tribune and Miami Herald editorial boards urged a swift reauthorization of the Bank.

Please see below for what businesses and local leaders across the state have been saying about Ex-Im and what a continued lapse means for them.

~Jared

Luis Arguello, President, DemeTECH Corporation (Miami Lakes, FL)

Florida Small Business Says It “Can’t Compete Internationally Without Ex-Im.” “For generations, the Ex-Im Bank has helped manufacturers and suppliers in the U.S. sell more goods abroad, supporting billions in exports and tens of thousands of jobs. This is not an abstract issue — my company has relied on the bank to insure a majority of our foreign sales. For small companies like mine, you can’t compete internationally without the Ex-Im. In fact, perhaps no region as a whole has benefited more from the Ex-Im Bank than South Florida, which is home to hundreds of small businesses that have used the bank to grow their exports and create jobs.” (Luis Arguello, “Export-Import https://exportersforexim.org/files/2015/10/bank vital for small business,” Sun-Sentinel, 7/13/15)

Alex Christensen, President & CEO, Southeast Hay Distributors (West Palm Beach, FL)

Southeast Hay Distributors CEO Says “I Don’t Know What I Would Do Without Ex-Im.” “‘I didn’t have the working capital to drop on a private insurance policy,’ Christensen says. ‘I don’t know what I would do without Ex-Im.’ Christensen tapped Ex-Im as a financial backstop beginning in 2010, and, not coincidentally, his business has taken off since then. Annual sales went from $770,000 in 2010 to nearly $2 million in 2013 to a projected $3 million in 2014. In 2013, exports accounted for 29% of Southeast Hay Distributors’ total sales; in 2014, that figure is expected to grow to nearly 40%.” (“Small Florida Business ‘Makes Hay’ Of Ex-Im Bank’s Insurance Offering,” Exporters For Ex-Im, 9/2014)

Daniel Davis, President & CEO, JAX Chamber

More Than 58,000 Small- And Medium-Sized Florida Businesses Are Exporters. “Ex-Im is especially important to Florida and Jacksonville because trade plays a major role in our economy. Trade supports more than 2.4 million jobs in the Sunshine State, and our exports of goods and services reached $96.4 billion last year.” (Daniel Davis, “JAX Chamber Supports Export-Import https://exportersforexim.org/files/2015/10/bank,” Florida Times Union, 9/11/15)