EB5 Stakeholder Letter

Reauthorize EB-5 Regional Center Program Before September 30, 2015 Expiration

Dear Congressional Leaders, Judiciary Committee Chairmen and Ranking Members:

As Congress starts its August recess, the undersigned organizations and companies write to thank you and commend your collective leadership in both the House and Senate toward reauthorization of the EB-5 Regional Center Program. We sincerely appreciate your hard work to date on this important program. As you return to your states and districts, we encourage your continued efforts to find consensus on strengthening the program, and, most critically, preventing its expiration on September 30, 2015.

EB-5 brings foreign capital into the United States to help public-private partnerships finance myriad development projects in rural, suburban, and urban communities across the nation. The program puts Americans to work. It has assisted funding of infrastructure, real estate development, energy production, health care facilities, charter schools, ski resorts, hotels, and manufacturing plants, among others. The consequences of program expiration would be dire and we pledge our strong support of your efforts to avoid the unnecessary disruption expiration would cause.

EB-5 has generated $5.2 billion over the 8-year period from 2005-2013. In 2013 alone, $1.6 billion in investments were raised with a potential to generate 31,000 jobs based on minimum program requirements. Putting that into perspective, 11 states have seen less job growth in the last 12 months. (According to a June 2015 study commissioned by the EB-5 Investment Coalition, www.eb5coalition.org.)

Failing to capture EB-5 investments going forward do not take into account the profound disruption the program’s expiration would have on investors who have pending petitions and American businesses currently using the program.

We know that Congress is facing a very busy work period following the August recess with many pressing issues. But we are encouraged by the significant bipartisan progress that has been made so far and we stand in support of all lawmakers committed to this program’s successful reauthorization. We share your desire to ensure the program’s integrity and there is broad support among industry stakeholders for many of the reforms included in S.1501, H.R.616, and H.R. 3370. We believe consensus can be achieved with relative ease on many of these important provisions in the context of the program’s timely reauthorization.

Congressional leaders have stated they do not want the EB-5 investment and job creation program to expire – not even for a single day. We agree, and we are confident that you, as leaders of Congress, can work together to reauthorize the EB-5 Regional Center Program prior to September 30, 2015.

We submit this letter with appreciation and in strong support of your efforts. We hope you will not hesitate to look to us for assistance to help ensure that any reforms and improvements considered as part of a final reauthorization measure will preserve and enhance the program’s positive economic impact for communities across the nation.

cc: Members of the Judiciary Committees of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives

• American Gaming Association
• American Hotel & Lodging Association
• American Immigration Lawyers Association
• American Resort Development Association
• American Seniors Housing Association
• Appalachia Drilling
• ARIS Capital Management LLC
• Artisan Business Group
• AVIP Regional Centers
• Brevet Capital
• BridgeForth Capital
• Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International
• City of Miami Regional Center
• Commercial Real Estate Finance Council
• Economic & Policy Resources
• EB-5 Capital
• EB-5 Investment Coalition
• EB-5 Regional Center Florida
• Front Range Regional Center
• Greystone & Co., Inc.
• Gulf States Regional Center
• Hilton Worldwide
• JL Northern Nevada Regional Center LLA
• LCR Capital Partners
• Lone Star Regional Center LLC
• Marriott International
• Midwest Metropolitan Regional Center
• National Apartment Association
• National Association of Home Builders
• National Association of REALTORS®
• National Multifamily Housing Council
• NES Financial
• Northeast Regional Center
• Pathways EB-5 Regional Centers
• Piedmont Regional Center
• Pyramid Management Group
• Real Estate Board of New York
• Related Companies
• Rockbridge Assisted Living
• Signature Bank
• Silverstein Properties
• SMASH Hotels
• Sun Corridor Regional Center
• Sunshine State Regional Center
• Texas Growth Fund Regional Center, LLC
• Texas Regional Center, LLC
• Texas Urban Triangle Regional Center
• The Odyssey Experience
• The Real Estate Roundtable
• The U.S. Conference of Mayors
• Three Streams Mid-Atlantic Regional Center
• U.S. Chamber of Commerce
• U.S. Freedom Capital
• Vermillion Consulting LLC
• West Coast Regional Center
• Write Source LLC