BANGOR, Maine - General Electric Co. may move about 500 American jobs - including about 80 in Maine - overseas because Congress did not renew a government program that allows foreign companies to borrow money to buy U.S. products.
Authorization for the U.S. Export Import Bank was not approved by Congress, forcing it to stop lending July 1. Foreign companies use the agency to buy expensive U.S. products when bank loans are not possible.
The company plans to move the jobs from the facilities in Maine, Texas, New York and South Carolina to France, Hungary and China.
The Bangor facility, which employs about 450 people, produces parts for power turbines, and GE says 80 of the jobs could be moved to France.