SDBA Seeking Candidates for Two Open Board Seats
Elections for the SDBA's Board of Directors for 2016 are scheduled for March and April. Two directors have terms that expire on April 30, 2016. Elections will take place in geographic Group I and Group III.
The Group I seat has been vacant since the director, Dave Rozenboom, First PREMIER Bank, Sioux Falls, was elected SDBA vice chairman last June. Ron Kristensen, Farmers & Merchants State Bank, Plankinton, is the current Group III director. Kristensen has served two, consecutive terms and is not eligible to run for re-election.
If you are interested in a Board position, please contact one of the nominating committee members by Thursday, March 24, 2016. Please submit a brief paragraph about your career history and a headshot photo for the election ballot. Newly-elected Board members will take office on May 1, 2016, and serve a three-year term expiring April 30, 2019. Learn more.
 2017 Scenes of South Dakota Calendar Orders Now Being Taken
SDBA Seeking Amateur Photos of South Dakota
The SDBA is pleased to offer its banks and associate members the 2017 Scenes of South Dakota Calendar.
This calendar will feature photos of South Dakota submitted by South Dakota bankers, their family members and customers. Your bank/business logo and name can be printed on each calendar to display in homes and businesses all year long. Calendar orders are due by Sept 1, 2016, to get the low
price of $1.19 per calendar. Calendars will be shipped by Nov. 1, 2016.
The Scenes of South Dakota calendars are exclusive to SDBA member banks and associate members. These calendars are a great opportunity to thank your customers for their business and promote your bank/business. The SDBA logo is also included to emphasize the strength and security of South Dakota’s banking industry. Learn more and place an order.
If you are an amateur photographer and would like the opportunity to have your creativity displayed in the 2017 calendar, this is your chance. Send us your photos of farms, barns, agricultural activities, historical South Dakota
locations, county fairs, carnivals, parades or festivals, fall colors, winter snowfalls, spring flowers, or summer fun. Any photo that shows the history and beauty of the great state of South Dakota qualifies.
All photos submitted will be judged, and the top photos will be featured throughout the 2017 calendar. The photo entry deadline is July 29, 2016. Learn more and submit a photo.
Questions, contact the SDBA's Alisa DeMers.
Lucas Lentsch to Depart as SD Secretary of Agriculture
South Dakota Secretary of Agriculture Lucas Lentsch announced on Tuesday his plans to depart the Department of Agriculture (SDDA) near the end of March 2016 for an opportunity in the private sector.
Lentsch, originally from Marshall County, has served as secretary since April 2013. Prior to his appointment, Lentsch had served as SDDA’s director of agricultural development.
“Over the past five years, I have thoroughly enjoyed serving South Dakota’s farmers, ranchers and our diverse ag industries,” Lentsch said. “The opportunity to work alongside dedicated public servants as well as collaborative stakeholders has made the experience an opportunity of a lifetime. I am looking forward to taking on a challenging leadership role in the ag sector as well as being more engaged in our family cattle operation.”
Gov. Dennis Daugaard praised Lentsch for his service.
“Lucas has been an outstanding leader in the ag community, and I appreciate his hard work,” Gov. Daugaard said. “He has been instrumental in reorganizing the department to be more reflective of the dynamic agriculture industry it serves. Lucas is an effective advocate for agriculture, and I wish him, Laura and family well in their future endeavors.”
The Governor and his leadership team will begin immediately to identify potential candidates to serve as the next secretary of Agriculture.
Assistance Available for Financing Beginning Farmers
Bond purchasers can potentially save thousands of dollars in federal taxes by investing in a beginning farmer.
Through the Beginning Farmer Bond program, the South Dakota Value Added Finance Authority (VAFA) issues tax-exempt bonds for qualifying beginning farmers to purchase agricultural land at lower interest rates. The limit on a beginning farmer bond is $520,000.
“To be eligible for the program, an applicant must be at least 18 years old, a resident of South Dakota, have a net worth under $400,000 and own less acres than 30 percent of the county median,” says Terri LaBrie, South Dakota Department of Agriculture finance administrator. “The bond program is a great way for a beginning farmer to buy land. It’s also advantageous for a retiring farmer willing to enter into a contract for deed with that beginning farmer or an individual investor looking to help finance a beginning farmer.”
Typically the Beginning Farmer Bond program works through a local lender. However, if a retiring farmer is interested in passing on his or her land to a beginner farmer, the interest from that contract sale is federally tax exempt-- providing substantial savings to the seller. Unfortunately, there are regulations prohibiting this type of transaction with closely related parties such as parents or grandparents, so a third party lender is required in those cases.
The South Dakota Department of Agriculture (SDDA) administers the Beginning Farmer Bond program through the Value Added Finance Authority board. The board meets monthly and reviews the applications for the program and issues the bonds for approved projects.
For more information on the financial programs offered through SDDA, visit its website or contact Terri LaBrie, finance administrator, at 605.280.4745.
ABA Provides Background to Congress on Overreaching CU Proposals
As credit union officials hit Capitol Hill this week for an annual lobbying event, ABA yesterday sent a letter to members of Congress that provides background information on several recent actions that would expand the scope and scale of credit unions and relevant questions for them to ask the visiting credit union officials and lobbyists.
ABA highlighted the fact that the current credit union tax exemption is one of the single largest corporate tax loopholes -- estimated by the Treasury Department to cost taxpayers $27 billion over 10 years -- and that it will likely grow as a result of recent National Credit Union Administration actions to expand business lending and dramatically expand credit unions’ field of membership.
Last week, NCUA finalized a rule that allows credit unions to exempt participations in loans to non-members from the statutory 12.25 percent member business lending cap. The rule also eliminates loan-to-value requirements, aggregate limits on construction development loans and the requirement of a personal guarantee.
Additionally, the NCUA has proposed to expand its field of membership to allow credit unions to serve combined statistical areas, which are larger than metropolitan areas; areas contiguous to their existing core-based statistical areas; and entire congressional districts, including at-large districts that encompass entire states. Read the letter
SDBA to Hold Live, Two-Day Training for Underwriters and Processors
The SDBA and Diehl Financial Education will hold a two-day FHA and USDA Mortgage Skills Course on May 18-19, 2016, at RedRossa Italian Grille in Pierre.
This training will cover the critical fundamentals of processing and underwriting these loan types along with all the changes and impacts in the past 12 months. Day 1 will cover FHA, and Day 2 will cover USDA underwriting.
These programs offer participants the opportunity to gain valuable knowledge as they are guided through basic rules, regulations and changes issued by HUD and USDA through interactive learning, exercises and case studies.
The course will be led by Marianne Collins, executive director for the Ohio and New York MBAs and Diehl’s president of government lending. Collins has more than 30 years of experience in the mortgage industry and has trained underwriters, loan officers, processors and lenders from small community banks to some of the largest lenders in the country on FHA, VA and USDA loans.
More information and register.
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