SDBA eNews: May 28, 2015

In This Issue

Fed Seeks Comments on NACHA Same-Day Payments Rule

The Federal Reserve last week requested comments on changes that the regional Federal Reserve Banks would make in connection to NACHA’s same-day ACH rule.

The Reserve Banks are proposing to adopt the enhanced same-day ACH service by including NACHA’s new rule in their operating documents. The Fed is seeking comments on the rule’s provisions making same-day ACH capability mandatory for all financial institutions and the 5.2 cent per transaction fee paid to receiving institutions.

Comments are due by July 2, giving the Fed 11 weeks to review the comments and approve the proposal before NACHA’s Sept. 23 deadline for the Fed board to approve the rule. Read the request for comments. For more information, contact ABA’s Steve Kenneally.


2015 SD Professional's Range Camp June 3-5 Near Sturgis


The 2015 Professional's Range Camp will be held June 3-5 at Lamphere Campground near Sturgis.

The camp is designed for agricultural land appraisers, agricultural land assessors, agricultural lenders, agricultural realtors and agricultural educators.

Sessions include a plant ID workshop, determining forage production, range case study tours, land use planning, a sustainable rangelands roundtable, a tour of Sanford Laboratories in Lead  and more.

See the full agenda and register.


Upcoming Events

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Questions/Comments

Contact Alisa DeMers, SDBA, at 800. 726.7322 or via email.

2015 SDBA/NDBA Annual Convention

Presenter Rob Bell To Teach Bankers 'How to WOW' Techniques


Most people don’t stay with companies; they stay with supervisors. To realize remarkable service that results in long-term business success, we must treat our team members as our very best customers.

Learn how to be a ring master of even the most challenging circus by attending presenter Rob Bell's session "Be a Ringmaster: 'How to WOW' Leadership" on Tuesday, June 9, at the 2015 SDBA/NDBA Annual Convention.

This year's convention "BANKER BOOT CAMP" will be held June 7-9 at the Sioux Falls Convention Center/Sheraton Hotel. Ring, who is being sponsored by Eide Bailly LLP, will also present the breakout session "Ringing Endorsements: 'How to WOW' Your Customers" on Tuesday.

See the full convention schedule and register to attend.


Rob Nichols Named New ABA President and CEO

 
ABA Chairman John Ikard yesterday announced that ABA has selected Rob Nichols to serve as the association’s new president and CEO. Nichols will join ABA later this summer upon Frank Keating's retirement after five years at the helm. Nichols, a former assistant secretary at the Treasury Department, is currently president and CEO of the Financial Services Forum.

“Rob Nichols will be a superb leader of the ABA,” said Ikard, who is also president and CEO of FirstBank Holding Co., Lakewood, Colo. “The banking industry is undergoing a great deal of change. We sought a visionary, strategic leader with demonstrated public policy acumen, a keen understanding of the entirety of the banking and financial system, and a strong track record of both strategic management and bipartisan advocacy. Rob Nichols hits the mark on all counts.”

“I am deeply honored to take on the responsibility of leading the ABA,” said Nichols. “The nation’s economic growth prospects depend on banks of all sizes and models in order to effectively serve the needs of local communities, clients and customers. I look forward to the opportunity of serving the ABA and will work tirelessly with members and the state bankers associations to improve the public policy environment in which all banks operate.”

Ikard saluted Keating for his service, noting that he “accepted this position during very difficult and trying economic times for our nation and for our nation’s banks” and “did a superb job of rallying our members, celebrating the key role they play in the vitality of their communities and the economy as a whole.” Read more.


Members of Congress Issue Bipartisan Call for TRID Grace Period

 
Hundreds of lawmakers wrote to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last week urging Director Richard Cordray to provide an enforcement grace period after the TILA-RESPA integrated disclosures take effect on Aug. 1 running through the end of 2015. The letters -- from 255 representatives and 41 senators -- note that TRID implementation is complex and that the lack of a grace period for lenders seeking to comply in good faith could “negatively impact consumers.”

The bipartisan letters -- driven in part by grassroots action by ABA members -- emphasized that a reasonable grace period would be useful in helping the banking and real estate industries continue to serve consumers during the busy fall homebuying season and would provide an opportunity for the CFPB to work with the industry to overcome implementation challenges.

ABA has strongly advocated with the CFPB for a limited grace period and supports legislative proposals in both houses of Congress to provide one. Read the House letter.


USPS Watchdog Says Postal Banking Could Be 'Extremely Popular'


The U.S. Postal Service's inspector general last week released a report offering examples of how USPS could expand its financial services offerings and arguing that these services "could be extremely popular."

The report outlined several approaches USPS could take. One would be to expand the current financial services offerings it has legal authority to provide, such as money transfers, bill payment and check cashing. Another approach -- should USPS be granted sufficient authority -- would be to partner with one or more financial institutions to provide prepaid cards and small-dollar loans.

A third broad approach would be to turn post offices into a "marketplace" for multiple financial institutions to offer products and services that meet certain standards, and the final approach studied would see USPS set up its own "post bank," which the report said "could have the biggest benefits for the underserved, but the process for establishing a post bank would likely be lengthy and difficult."

ABA pushed back against the report's conclusions. “We remain concerned about the impact that expanding the role of USPS into the realm of traditional banking could have on community-based institutions," said ABA EVP Ken Clayton. "USPS could be perceived as a government-endorsed and preferred provider of financial products. This would harm the ability of local institutions to serve their customers and meet the needs of their communities.” Read the report.


ABA-Backed Reg Reform Bill Clears Senate Committee


The regulatory reform bill introduced by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) was approved by the committee last Thursday. The ABA-supported bill would provide regulatory relief for community, mid-size and regional banks, tailor the regulatory structure for systemically important banks and begin restructuring within the Federal Reserve System and at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Although the bill cleared the committee on a 12-10 party-line vote, statements from committee leaders pointed to further negotiations on elements of the bill, including the asset threshold for systemically important banks. The bill keeps the $50 billion threshold in place, but changes the process the regulators use to make the determination for institutions below $500 billion. Ranking Member Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) signaled that he would support a higher designation level than today’s $50 billion.

ABA President and CEO Frank Keating welcomed the bill’s advance. “This bill is a significant step toward removing many of the statutory and regulatory barriers that constrain banks’ ability to serve their customers and meet the needs of their local communities,” he said. “We firmly believe that common ground exists for financial reform in this Congress. We need to seize it and move ahead together for the sake of our customers and the broader economy.”

The bill’s regulatory relief provisions include nearly two dozen measures that are part of ABA’s Agenda for America’s Hometown Banks, many of which have been introduced as standalone measures or in other relief packages in both houses of Congress. During the committee vote, members also approved ABA-supported amendments that would bar regulators from participating in the Justice Department’s Operation Choke Point initiative and that would raise the asset threshold for Consumer Financial Protection Bureau supervision from $10 billion to $50 billion. Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.) joined the panel’s Republicans in voting for the amendments.


MasterCard Settlement Not Accepted


MasterCard last Thursday said that not enough MasterCard-issuing banks accepted the proposed $19 million settlement with Target by the May 20 deadline.

The settlement was seeking participation from issuers representing at least 90 percent of eligible MasterCard accounts accepting offers through the settlement. “We will continue to work to resolve this matter,” MasterCard said in an email to its issuers. For further information, contact ABA’s Molly Wilkinson.