Stop the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Bailouts

The American taxpayer has the largest stake in the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF has regularly put American taxpayers on the hook to bail out powerful banks and profligate foreign nations with poor economic policies.

For years, government officials have been touting the fallacy that IMF payments are costless to American taxpayers. However, American taxpayers subsidize the IMF to the tune of billions of dollars annually. U.S. taxpayers contribute an estimated 17.09 percent of the IMF’s total funding. U.S. taxpayers recently bailed out Greece and Ireland. It has been reported that Italy, Belgium, Spain and Portugal may be next in line to receive bailouts.

The IMF has encouraged reckless behavior by holding out the prospect of a bailout to any country and big politically connected bank that fails.Governments and banks are more likely to take greater risks when they believe that they will not be exposed to the full costs of their mistakes. The IMF rewards countries with poor macroeconomic policies and banks that make risky loans with taxpayer-subsidized bailouts.

Nearly all of the IMF’s efforts have been counterproductive.The IMF merely diverts money away from taxpayers in the productive private sector and into the hands of international bureaucrats. These IMF officials redistribute wealth to benefit multinational corporations and banks.

Congress must reject any additional funding for IMF bailouts. U.S. taxpayers should not forced to bailout any bank or nation.

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