Congressman Gregory W. Meeks Proposes Resolution to Establish Haiti Marshall Plan CommitteeEstablishment of Committee Will Help Provide Long Term Recovery to Haiti

(WASHINGTON, DC)– Today, Congressman Gregory W. Meeks proposed a resolution to effectively address the crisis in Haiti by establishing a Haiti Marshall Plan Committee. This committee will bring about coordinated efforts to create a successful long term recovery plan to assist Haiti in one of the worst national disasters in over 200 years.

The Haiti Marshall Plan Committee will have representatives from multilateral development banks, international financial institutions, United States bilateral aid programs, and major international charities and nongovernmental organizations to coordinate aid and development initiatives in response to the earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12, 2010.

“The country of Haiti has endured an unfortunate environmental catastrophe that has brought much distraught to the people of Haiti, Haitian Americans and citizens around the world. The people of Haiti need our help and support more than ever before. It is critical that donations and aid be delivered to Haiti in the most coordinated effort possible. With the establishment of the Haiti Marshall Plan Committee we will be able to avoid significant delays in recovery and reconstruction efforts in Haiti by allowing key individuals to collaborate and strategize for a long term recovery,” stated Congressman Meeks.

This plan will include representatives from the Department of Treasury, the Department of Defense, the Department of State, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other selected key individuals. These individuals will come together to create a coordinated strategy for the recovery and reconstruction of Haiti to prevent duplication of efforts and uses of all available resources.

“These representatives come from our nation’s most important government agencies that are able to assist, as well as the most critical international financial institutions, development banks, and charitable organizations that can provide much needed financial and logistical support without adding to the nation’s existing debt and enable reconstruction of Haiti’s infrastructure. Under the provisions of my resolution the country of Haiti will receive the necessary support and financial relief in the most expedited manner possible,” stated Congressman Meeks.

Now serving in his sixth full-term, Meeks was elected to the House on February 3, 1998. Representing New York's Sixth Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives, Meeks' district covers all towns of Southeast Queens, Far Rockaway and Howard Beach. He is a member of the House Committee on Financial Services and the Committee on Foreign Affairs. Congressman Meeks is the Chairman of the International Monetary Policy & Trade Subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee. He is a Member of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), New Democrats Coalition and the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC). He serves as the Co-chair of the Malaysia Caucus, Services Caucus, Dialogue Caucus, OAS Caucus and the Middle East Economic Partnership Caucus.