Pub. 4 2014-2015 Issue 4

O V E R A C E N T U R Y : B U I L D I N G B E T T E R B A N K S - H E L P I N G C O L O R A D A N S R E A L I Z E D R E A M S January • February 2015 5 The Dust Has Settled – 2015 Could Be Better For Banks Across the country, bankers have breathed a collective sigh of relief, as the 2014 midterm elections brought with themsome pleasant outcomes for our industry. Bank-friend- ly candidates won handily in a number of states, including here in Colorado. At the state level, we finally have split government, with control of the legislative houses shared between Democrat and Republican hands. This is something to celebrate, as shared control helps to prevent radical ideas from percolat- ing from either side of the aisle. Balanced power continues at the federal level and we expect an increased ability to achieve regulatory relief for banks. Most notably, Cory Gardner enjoyed a decisive win over SenatorMarkUdall by a vote of 50 percent to 44 percent. The race had been identified by Friends of Traditional Banking – a nationwide bank super PAC founded by CBA and several other state banking associations – as one of the two most important in the country for banks. Senator Udall, time and again, had been a champion of credit unions. CBA met with him on numerous occasions, working to explain the un-level playing field between credit unions and banks. Our information fell on deaf ears, as he repeatedly introduced proposals to raise the member busi- ness-lending cap for credit unions. Meanwhile, throughout his time in Con- gress, Cory Gardner has been a supporter of traditional banking. Addressing bankers at CBA while on the campaign trail this year, Gardner said, “So many things have come down on top of banking, making it difficult for companies to find the capital they need to grow and thrive. I firmly believe the more banks we have operating without out-of-con- trol federal regulation, the more opportuni- ties we have.” Bankers rallied together against credit unions’ unfair advantage with a campaign: It’s time to pay, aiming to turn the tides away from blind support by Udall and others. All of these positives can be attributed to a single factor: collaboration. Bankers across the country came together to ensure victory of candidates who understand and support the banking industry. We must continue working together to ensure a positive environment for banks. While we don’t expect a repeal of the Dodd-Frank Act, we do expect to secure some regulatory relief for banks, though it might not go as far as we would like. Already, HR 2673, championed by the ABA/Alliance Regulatory Relief Task Force, made good headway in 2014, and we hope to see it pass in the next session of Congress. The bill makes portfolio loans automatically compliant with ATR and QM. And, a proposal is gaining traction which would provide relief for well capitalized banks. There is a light at the end of the tunnel now that Sen. Harry Reid is not blocking the way of banks’ advancement. What is more likely is a single bill that will cover a number of issues – likely attached to a non-banking proposal. We expect Jeb Hensarling – who will again head the House Financial Services Committee – and Richard Shel- by – poised to take over the Banking Committee – to work together though they don’t see completely eye to eye. Both conservatives are skeptics of the Consumer Financial Pro- tection Bureau and the Federal Reserve Board.  The Dust Has Settled  continued on page 10