The RFC was an executive agency with the ability to obtain funding through the Treasury outside of the normal legislative process. Thus, the RFC could be used to finance a variety of favored projects and programs without obtaining legislative approval. RFC lending did not count toward budgetary expenditures, so the expansion of the role and influence of the government through the RFC was not reflected in the federal budget.
," which were backed not by taxes but by the revenue that would be generated by the infrastructure funded by the loans. , proposes to duplicate the feats of the RFC without increasing the federal budget deficit or taxes, by forming a National Infrastructure Bank . China is dealing with the global economic downturn by embarking on a stimulus program involving large national infrastructure projects, including massive water infrastructure.
Like the RFC, the policy banks mainly get their funds by issuing bonds. They can also get"Pledged Supplementary Lending" directly from the Chinese central bank, which presumably creates the money on its books, as all central banks are empowered to do.