WASHINGTON – A force of community bankers-300 strong-headed to Capitol Hill last week with credit unions and a few other top priorities in mind.
The Independent Community Bankers of America rounded up hundreds of its members to discuss a handful of issues with their lawmakers last week. One of the top agenda items was to discuss "narrowing the competitive gap with tax-subsidized credit unions and allowing credit unions to freely choose the charter that best fits their customers' needs," according to a statement.
Other issues ICBA members planned to take to the Hill with them are relieving regulatory burden with the Communities First Act (H.R. 2061/S. 1568); separation of banking and commerce; meaningful estate tax relief for small businesses; establishing a national data security standard; and providing Sarbanes-Oxley relief.
"ICBA is working with Congress on legislation that affects not just community bankers, but millions of our customers who depend on their local banks for business and consumer loans, mortgages and other financial services," ICBA Chairman Terry J. Jorde, president and CEO of CountryBank USA, Cando, N.D., said. "Community banks are the engines that help drive investment in communities across our nation."
An ICBA spokesman declined to comment further on the matters of discussion or whom the bankers were meeting with.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.