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Lending Study Committee Created
House Banks and Banking Committee Chairman Johnny Floyd (D-Cordele) along with Representatives Roger Williams (R-Dalton) and Jay Shaw (D-Lakeland) have introduced H.R. 703, a resolution creating the House Study Committee on Lending and Financial Services.  The resolution mentions the proliferation of a variety of lending and financial services, other than those provided by banks and credit unions, which have been offered to consumers and which have often resulted in abuses and consumer complaints.  The resolution included small loans, leasebacks, payday loans, title pawns and other types of loans.  The study committee will be composed of members of the House Banks and Banking Committee and will be appointed by Speaker Terry Coleman (D-Eastman).  The committee will meet before next session and discuss legislation such as S.B. 157 by Senators Don Cheeks (R-Augusta) and Vincent Fort (D-Atlanta) that would put most payday lenders out of business.  Other legislation could be recommended by the committee once they have additional information.

2003 State Legislative Issues
Governor Sonny Perdue
Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor
Georgia House of Representatives
Georgia State Senate
Federal Legislative Issues
U.S. Congress
Legislative Updates
Legal Issues

FDIC Chairman Speaks
Don Powell, FDIC chairman, spoke to a group of bankers in Atlanta last week and took the opportunity to differentiate the banking industry from many other financial service providers.  “Bankers aren’t nervous about new rules requiring CEOs of publicly traded companies to attest to the veracity of their financial reports–after all, we’ve been signing our quarterly call reports for a long time, so we’re not afraid to put our good names on the line.”  Powell also called on Congress to look into debt rating agencies.

You Will Be Hearing From The FDIC Office of The Ombudsman
The FDIC Office of the Ombudsman recently began an ambitious marketing project. An FDIC Regional Ombudsman will be personally visiting or speaking to the Chief Operating Officer (COO) or President of every FDIC-regulated bank – all 5200+ of them. The purpose is to inform the key decision makers at each institution that the FDIC Office of the Ombudsman can handle questions, issues, or problems – of any kind – either by finding an FDIC subject matter expert for the bank to work with, or by confidentially handling the issue themselves.  No matter the topic, the Office of the Ombudsman will attempt to handle or resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Because the Office of the Ombudsman is independent of FDIC’s lines of business (such as supervision and compliance), it is a neutral source of assistance. FDIC guarantees bankers a fair hearing, and if alternatives are available, the office can assist. Alternatives include facilitating communications or informally mediating disputes. So be prepared....you will be hearing from the FDIC Office of the Ombudsman.  The Regional Ombudsman is Sharon Easky (972) 761-2301, based in Dallas.

GBA Leadership Heading to DC
GBA Chairman Larry Kuglar, President of First National Bank of Polk County in Cedartown, will be leading a delegation of Georgia bankers going to Washington later this month to meet with the Georgia delegation and key federal regulators.  The bankers attending are representatives from the Board of Directors, Public Affairs Committee and BankPAC Board.  “With the shakeup in the Georgia delegation after last year’s election, we thought it was necessary for us to make the effort to visit them in Washington.  While most of us are focused on getting the economy going again and concerned about the instability in the Middle East, there are still ongoing negotiations on legislative issues important to our industry and we need our voices heard,” Larry said.

Deposit Insurance Bill
Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) has introduced S. 913, the Federal Deposit Insurance Fairness and Economic Opportunity Act. The bill is narrower than the comprehensive bill that passed the House. S. 913 would provide for the return of excess amounts in the deposit insurance funds over a 1.40% reserve ratio based on institutions’ historical contributions to those funds.

Sen. Miller on Bankruptcy Reform
Sen. Zell Miller joined ten other Democratic Senators in sending a joint letter to Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) expressing their support for bankruptcy reform legislation and asking that the Senate take up a bankruptcy reform bill similar to last year’s conference report as soon as possible.  The letter reads, in part, as follows:

“After years of negotiation and compromise, a balanced bill emerged out of conference last year that would have addressed the worst flaws in federal bankruptcy law.  We strongly believe that that bill should be the foundation from which we work in the 108th Congress.  With our economy struggling, bankruptcy reform is needed now more than ever.  As many of our colleagues have invested a great deal of time and energy in this effort over the years, we urge that the Senate take up a bankruptcy reform bill modeled after last year’s conference report as soon as possible.”

Calendar of Events
Schools
Conferences
Seminars
Events
American Institute of Banking
Leadership GBA
Personal Economics Program (PEP)
Internet Training

GAFLA Tape/Toolkits Now Available
The telephone seminar GBA hosted last week on the new Georgia Fair Lending Act attracted 585 bankers at 172 locations, and the feedback has been terrific.  As the Act was effective March 7, all Georgia banks need to be in immediate compliance.  We have had several requests from bankers who were unable to participate in the seminar about purchasing copies of the audiotape.  We have arranged for the tapes to be reproduced and can make them available along with an updated GAFLA Compliance Toolkit.  Please call GBA’s Susie McGehee with questions at (404) 420-2010.

Calling All PEP Report Cards!
Leadership GBA’s 2002-2003 PEP goal is to make at least 50,000 contacts.  To date only 16,000 contacts have been reported to the GBA office.  The PEP reporting deadline date is June 2 and we need your help to achieve our goal!  It’s easy to report your PEP contacts.  Each time you return from a visit to a school or other group presentation, simply complete a PEP Report Card and return it via mail or fax (404/522-9848) to the GBA office.  Remember that your National Teach Children to Save Day presentations can be reported as PEP contacts.  If you have any questions or need assistance, please call GBA’s Susie McGehee at (404) 420-4010.  Send those PEP Report Cards to GBA today!

Leadership Conference Plans Under Way
Plans are well under way for Leadership GBA’s 2003 Annual Leadership Conference.  This year’s conference will be held on July 13-16, at the Amelia Island Plantation in Amelia Island, Florida.  The program will feature informative sessions on the economy, credit issues, and a legislative update.  Dan Cathy, Chick-fil-A President and COO, will also be on hand to share his thoughts on customer service excellence, an area his company has mastered and is known for worldwide.  A conference brochure, including registration forms, is enclosed in this Bulletin.  If you have questions about the conference or Leadership GBA, call GBA’s Susie McGehee at (404) 420-2010.  Come take advantage of this excellent opportunity to learn and network with your peers!

For Sale
Summer 2003, Citizens Bank of Laurens County, a division of Citizens Bank of Swainsboro, will offer for sale a modular office with the following specifications:  28’ x 46’; teller counters and check desk; Durawood exterior siding; 8’0” ceiling with recessed lighting; one handicap approved restroom; ADA-approved specifications; vinyl-covered sheetrock walls; commercial grade carpet throughout (vinyl in bath); floor structure designed to support safes; dual 3.0 ton air-conditioning systems; night depository/TL 15 chest for cash; drive-up window with deal drawer; metal under-counter teller cabinets; and alarms with CCTV.  For more information, please call Jeff Cannon at (478) 272-7775.

Innovative Sales Toolkit Provider
SEDOA Systems, Inc. – GBA’s newest Strategic Partner
The Georgia Bankers Association approved the endorsement of SEDOA Systems, Inc., a provider of innovative platform sales tools on March 26, 2003.  SEDOA provides open standards sales tools that boost platform sales productivity by as much as 30%.

Glen Sloan, President of SEDOA Systems, said, “Getting the endorsement of the GBA is a major milestone for our company. At less than $25 per CSR per month, we think we have a lot to offer banks of all sizes, even the smallest community banks, and we’re delighted that the GBA Services Inc. Board agrees.”

The SEDOA System uses open standards technology to:

•  Visually present bank services, right from the CSR’s work station

•  Track CSR productivity and 

• Provide automatic follow-up on cross sell opportunities

Designed for community banks with limited IT resources, the SEDOA System is easy to install and easy to use. It runs on equipment you probably already own. And, it’s cheap … less than $25 per CSR per month.

Alpharetta, Chattahoochee National Bank
Congratulations to President and CEO H. N. “Nat” Padget and directors for receiving the 5-Star (Superior) rating for the ninth consecutive year from the Bauer Financial, Inc.

Covington, First Nation Bank
Johnny R. Myers has joined the bank as Community Executive of Newton County.

Darien, Southeastern Bank
Carolyn B. Kopotic has been promoted to Assistant Vice President and Branch Manager.

Dawson, Bank of Terrell
Congratulations to Jack F. Tuck on his recent retirement after 25 years of service.  Edward L. Shuler has been elected to replace him as President and CEO.

Decatur, Horizon Bank
Jan I. Upchurch has joined the bank as Vice President and Manager of Retail Banking; Wendy C. Beuglas as Vice President and Commercial Banking Officer; Alan R. Thomas as Vice President and Manager of the SBA Lending Program; and Kerri L. Morrin as Banking Officer and Branch Manager.

Fitzgerald, Colony Bank of Fitzgerald
Cheryl G. Seagroves has been promoted to Vice President.

Gainesville, Gainesville Bank & Trust
Sean Childers has been promoted to Senior Vice President and head of the Retail Division

Latest Bank to Link
Welcome to First Chatham Bank, Savannah, Brian Foster, President, as the latest bank to link to GBA’s website. Call Lydia Thomas at (404) 420-2039 when your bank is ready to link.

Join Our Email Distribution List
A bonus of getting the e-Bulletin and e-Legislative Update is the number of links that are included. This is a great way to keep your key employees informed of significant industry information, trends and events. We do not disclose email addresses and only use them for internal communication purposes. Bankers from any member bank can be added to the email distribution list by sending an email containing the name and email address of each individual to GBA’s Lydia Thomas. 

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