WASHINGTON – America's Community Bankers recently urged legislators to oppose a bill amendment that could strike increased deposit insurance coverage for IRAs. At issue is S. 1562, the Safe and Fair Deposit Insurance Act of 2005 of which Sen. Jim Bunning (D-Ky.) has called for an amendment to strike increased coverage. The bill currently proposes to increase deposit insurance coverage from $100,000 to $250,000. "Retirement assets often exceed the current $100,000 coverage limit by substantial amounts. Increasing coverage for IRAs to $250,000 will allow customers to increase their retirement savings with the knowledge the funds are protected," wrote Robert Davis, ACB executive vice president & managing director, government relations in a letter to Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and Chairman of the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee and Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D-Md.) ranking member of the same Committee. Davis said "the shift in retirement funding from defined benefit plans to IRA and 401(k)-type savings has increased the obligation of individuals to manage their own assets."