On September 22ND, the European American Business Council (EABC) sent a letter to Senate Banking Committee Chairman Shelby and Ranking Member Sarbanes commending them on their recent work to strengthen the national security review process for foreign investment.

The letter outlines EABC’s support for the direction of reform found in the National Security Foreign Investment Reform and Strengthened Transparency Act of 2006 (HR 5337).   The letter also details, however, EABC member concerns with certain provisions contained within the Senate version (S 3549) – including an extension of the initial 30-day review period by an additional 30 days and broad congressional notifications – that were deemed harmful to the strong U.S. reputation of providing an open and nondiscriminatory investment environment.

According to Michael Maibach, President and CEO of EABC, “while EABC supports efforts to ensure that foreign investments do not create national security risks, any reform of the Exon-Florio amendment must strike a delicate balance between ensuring an open investment climate and the needs of national security.  We believe the House bill strikes that balance most effectively.”



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