Senate nears vote on Export-Import Bank renewal

The Senate is nearing a final vote on legislation to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank for three years and raise its lending cap from the current $100 billion to $140 billion.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the Senate would take up five Republican amendments before taking a final vote on Tuesday.

If, as expected, the Senate passes the bill after defeating the amendments, the bill goes to the president.

The House easily passed the measure last week despite opposition from some conservative groups that argued that the government should not have a role in the market place.

The independent federal agency last year provided $32 billion in export financing to help American companies sell goods overseas.

Without congressional action the bank's charter will terminate at the end of the month.