MINT Act

Key Points

• This bill, introduced by a bipartisan group in Congress, changes tax rules to help local governments save money when they borrow for public projects like schools, roads, and housing.
• Currently, if a local government gets a guarantee from a Federal Home Loan Bank to back their bonds, those bonds might lose their tax-exempt status. This bill ensures those bonds remain tax-free for investors.
• By keeping these bonds tax-exempt, it makes it cheaper for cities and states to fund community improvements because they can pay lower interest rates to the people who buy the bonds.
• This action restores a financial tool that was previously available to local governments but expired at the end of 2010, allowing Federal Home Loan Banks to once again support local infrastructure.
• The bill also requires the Federal Housing Finance Agency to set safety and soundness rules to ensure these financial guarantees are managed responsibly and do not put the banking system at risk.

Impact Analysis

Govbase has not yet run an impact analysis on this legislation.