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Happy New Year!

We all breathed a big sigh of relief when the new year dawned with minimal disruptions due to the much-maligned millennium bug.  The GBA sent the following press release to the media on Monday of this week:

Business As Usual at Georgia Banks

January 3, 2000 –  Years of “finding, fixing and testing” for the Y2K computer bug paid off for Georgia bank customers as the new century dawned, reports the Georgia Bankers Association (GBA).  “We received no reports of significant problems on our Year 2000 telephone hotline and the banks are open today and processing as usual,” stated Joe Brannen, GBA President.  The federal and state banking regulators called each of the institutions during the weekend to check on the banks’ status and both the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance report similar findings.

“The banking industry poured millions of dollars into repairing and replacing computer software and hardware and the industry is totally prepared to enter the new millennium with the most sophisticated technology available in the marketplace,” said Walter M. Deriso, GBA’s elected Chairman and Vice Chairman of Synovus Financial Corp. in Columbus.  “That technology combined with the more than 40,000 Georgia bank employees put Georgia’s banks in a position to continue offering products and services our customers demand,” he concluded.

Our thanks to the many volunteers who worked with the GBA the past three years on our Y2K Task Force.  The bankers coordinated breakout sessions at our annual Expo, helped develop our Y2K press kits and represented the association at Y2K community events throughout the state.

ABA Town Hall Meeting
Please join the President of the American Bankers Association, Hjalma Johnson, Chairman and CEO of East Coast Bank Corp of Dade City, Florida, for a Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Macon.  The meeting will begin at noon and will include lunch.  The ABA is covering the cost of the meeting, so there is no registration fee to attend.  However, in order to plan for the event, we ask that you complete the enclosed registration form and return it to the GBA office.  GBA is also sponsoring a Banks in Insurance seminar earlier that day in the same location, and a registration form is enclosed to sign up for that event.  Please join us in Macon to hear what lies ahead of us in the new millennium and share your views.  Call GBA’s Joe Brannen at (404) 420-2026 with questions about the Town Hall Meeting or Marybeth Jones (404) 420-2032 with questions about the insurance seminar.

Federal Legislative Issues
State Legislative Issues
Georgia House of Representatives
Georgia State Senate
U.S. Congress
Bank Regulators

Legislative Reception, January 12, 1999

BankPAC Campaign Update
Since the last Bulletin, the officers and directors of the following banks have participated in GBA’s 1999 FedPAC campaign along with the following affiliates of Synovus Financial Corp., Columbus:  Synovus Securities, Inc.; Synovus Service Corp.; Synovus Technologies, Inc.; Synovus Trust; and Total System Services (TSYS).

• First American Bank & Trust Company, Athens, Bobby Heath, Executive Vice President

• United Bank, Barnesville, Doug Tuttle, President

The officers and directors of the following banks contributed to GBA’s 1999 StatePAC campaign: 

• United Bank, Barnesville, Doug Tuttle, President

• Georgia Bank & Trust, Calhoun, Larry Roye, President

• Also our thanks to the officers of the Georgia League of Savings Institutions, John Holle, Chairman.  They made a substantial contribution to the StatePAC recently when the League’s PAC was liquidated.

“Banks and bankers throughout the state were tremendously supportive of the BankPAC campaign this past year,” reports Pait Willis, BankPAC chairman and President of South Georgia Banking Company in Tifton.   “Contributions to the StatePAC totaled $44,197 and to the FedPAC totaled $54,862,” he concluded.  Thank you for your support. 

Calendar of Events
Schools
Conferences
Seminars
Georgia AIB
Georgia AIB Online Courses
Professional Development Guide
Internet Training

January Seminars:
CEO Academy (Human Resources Management)
Advanced Compliance Symposium
Loan Documentation 101 Part 1: The Basics
Banks in Insurance
Safe Deposit Basics

Advanced Compliance Symposium – January 19-20 at the Crowne Plaza, Macon –  Annual forum for experienced compliance officers to pick up new and active regulatory concerns.

Georgia AIB Registration – Just before the holiday break your folks should have received their copies of the AIB Advantage, which lists all the courses to be held during Winter Quarter 2000.  Our goal is to match the large number of enrollments from Winter Quarter last year, so please support and promote AIB classes in your local area. Classes start January 24.

Georgia Banking School – Twenty-eight bankers took advantage of the Early Bird registration and enrolled in the 2000 freshman class in Athens. Having broken recent total enrollment figures for the past three years, another sellout at 70 is expected. We recommend that each bank make its Georgia Banking School registration decisions soon.  

Welcome New Participants
The Board of Directors of GBA Insurance Trust welcomes the officers and employees of North Georgia Bank, Watkinsville, Chuck Williams, President/CEO and Horizon Bank, Decatur, Reggie Cox, President/CEO to the Trust.  These banks join more than 275 other community banks throughout Georgia in participating in this unmatched member benefit.  Call GBA’s Susan Kelley at (404) 420-2017 for information.

Also, the Board of Directors of GBA Retirement Services, Inc. welcomes the officers and employees of First National Bank of Johns Creek, Andy Walker, President and CEO, to the Trust.  The bank has adopted the GBA’s 401(k) plan for their participants.  Call GBA’s Mandy Richards at (404) 420-2025 with questions.

For more information, send an e-mail to the Webmaster.