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Have You Contributed to NYSIBPAC This Year?
If not...now is the time! We need your help in this statewide election year to support candidates and committees who understand community banks' needs. Can we count on you?
CLICK HERE for our 2016 PAC contribution form. Help support IBANYS' political action efforts in New York State.
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For more information, visit:
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"New Leaders In Banking" Award
& Conference: December 14
The Independent Bankers Association of New York State (IBANYS) and Banking New York Magazine want your bank to
help us identify future leaders of our industry. Not just f
inancial professionals traditionally recognized for generating significant revenue -- but those who think beyond the bottom line "go the extra mile".
- Are you a banking professional who wants to recognize a peer?
- Are you a manager who wants to congratulate an employee for always going the extra mile?
This is your chance to nominate someone for a "New Leaders in Banking" award.
Winners will be honored during the Banking New York Conference on December 14th in Albany, New York. Please join us and enjoy a day recognizing
New Leaders in Banking, networking with peers, learning about new products and services to strengthen your institution, and hearing from industry thought leaders during numerous motivating and educational sessions.
How can you nominate someone?
It's easy.
Visit bankingnyconference.com
and click on the "New Leaders Nominations" tab on top.
Questions? E-mail
thewarrengroup.com, or call
(617) 896-5373.
New York Community Banks:
It's Benefits Season!
It's approaching the time to sign up for health benefits for 2017. We suggest you take a look at our healthcare partner, My Wellness Resource" as an addition to your existing benefit package. The
Teledoc
program is an exciting new way to provide value to your institution and employees. It  provides 24/7/365 access to a doctor through the convenience of phone or video consults. It is an affordable option for quality medical care.
Click here to read how high deductibles can lead to health care avoidance. . .
and here to learn how this program can help you in planning your health care benefits package.
Community banks can take advantage of a low-cost, non-traditional program to help save time and money, and offer employees on demand health care. It's an exciting new way for community banks to provide additional health care benefits options, reduce cost and retain employees -- designed to improve productivity, decrease absenteeism and boost morale without straining your bottom line.
C
ontact Alan Justin, Managing Partner at (716) 907-5500 or call the IBANYS office at (518) 436-4646.
For more details on the benefits of the My Wellness Resource Card, visit:
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IBANYS Members:
Are You Serving On Our Committees?
IBANYS relies on our member banks to play a pivotal role in our policy formulation, operations and programming. We need YOUR bank represented on our committees, to make sure we are addressing the issues, programs, products and services important to your institution, and our industry. Why not sign up for one of the following Committees or Peer Groups?
- Government Relations Committee
- CFO Peer Group
- Compliance Peer Group
- Innovation Committee
E-mail IBANYS' Director of Operations Linda Gregware ([email protected]) for details/to sign up.
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Government Relations
ALBANY UPDATE
State Proposals On Cybersecurity, Zombie Properties, Incentive Comp
The State Department of Financial Services has announced new proposed regulations and guidance that could have a significant impact on community  banks and establish a precedent nationally and for other states. IBANYS has been gathering input from member banks as we develop our comment letters and responses. Community banks are concerned about an even greater regulatory burden, and may not have the necessary compliance resources. IBANYS will be updating members of the Government Relations Committee and Board of Directors in the coming days on the status of this process.
- A new guidance instructing banks to monitor incentive compensation practices "to ensure any employee incentive arrangements do not encourage inappropriate corporate practices." The Governor cited "inappropriate behavior...at institutions like Wells Fargo" and said "there must be zero tolerance for reckless policies." DFS Superintendent Vullo added: "DFS will take swift enforcement action...Board members and executive staff at regulated banks are responsible for making certain that sufficient controls are in place to safeguard against the inherent risks and conflicts of interest associated with cross-selling and referral bonus arrangements."
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A proposed
cybersecurity regulation would
require
banks to e
stablish a cybersecurity program, a
dopt a written cybersecurity policy, d
esignate a Chief Information Security Officer and have
policies and procedures designed to ensure the security of information systems and nonpublic information accessible to, or held by, third-parties.
It also includes a variety of other requirements to "protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information systems."
- The proposed "zombie properties" regulation would require banks and mortgage services to report vacant and abandoned properties in accordance with the new law signed in June. The law would focus on expediting foreclosure proceedings, improving efficiency and integrity of mandatory settlement conferences and obligating banks to secure, protect and maintain vacant and abandoned properties before and during foreclosure proceedings. IBANYS worked to protect the interests of community banks in the process, including "carve outs" to exempt the vast majority of community banks based on a formula of their percentage of one-to-four family mortgage loans compared to the total number of such loans in New York State.
Cuomo Lists Priorities, Works To Elect Democratic State Senate
Governor Cuomo said his first priority when the new state legislative session begins in January will be to pass additional ethics reforms -- especially limits on outside income of state legislators. He
 also mentioned the DREAM Act, criminal justice reform, increasing the age of adult incarceration and campaign finance reform. Meanwhile, the Governor -- who has never aggressively worked to elect a Democratic State Senate in the past, is now doing so. Press reports say he now sees a GOP-controlled Senate as an impediment to achieving aspects of his agenda. However, he reportedly indicated he'd oppose fellow Democrats who don't support his socially progressively, fiscally conservative agenda. He also said he believed "mainline" Democrats will need to form a majority coalition with the five0-member Independent Democratic Conference that formed a coalition with the Republicans the last few cycles.
WASHINGTON UPDATE
FinCen To Banks: Include Details
On Cyber Attacks In SARs
The federal government told banks to include details about cyberattacks when filing mandatory reports on fraud and money laundering, in an effort
 to help battle digital crimes that pose "a significant threat" to the U.S. financial system.
The U.S. Treasury Department's office of Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), released an advisory that specifies what details banks should include in SARs when there is a cyber element in the case:
"The bank should include all available information," including describing how the system was breached, IP addresses of computers used by hackers and device identifiers.
Treasury Proposal Would Impact Family
Owned Community Banks
Meanwhile, ICBA reports that a recent Treasury-proposed rule would effectively end estate planning techniques commonly used to transfer family-owned businesses (including community banks) from generation to generation.
The proposed rule  (under Section 2704 of the federal tax code) would disallow valuation discounts for minority stakes or stakes that are not marketable. Loss of these discounts will increase the tax on many estates by over 30%, resulting in forced sales and bank consolidation.
ICBA is urging community banks to urge their congressional representatives to cosponsor H.R. 6100, by Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio), which would prevent the Treasury proposal from taking effect.
CFPB's Cordray: Expect More Regulation
& Oversight
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray
outlined regulatory actions of the CFPB from 2014 to the present, and said more regulation and oversight
 will come,
listing consumer complaints, redlining and RESPA violations as areas meriting attention. He said
the cost of compliance, though burdensome for the mortgage industry, was only what it should expect in light of the damage it caused, saying regulations were "inevitable" in light of the "far-reaching" effects of the financial crisis that Congress was trying to fix.
He discussed CFPB's Title XIV regulations on qualified mortgages and ability-to-repay rule:
"By adopting a reasonable, good-faith approach, we met the industry halfway." He called CFPB's method "corrective rather than punitive. "Our initial (findings) indicate that lenders have been making good-faith efforts to comply with the rules."
INDUSTRY INSIGHTS
New Home Sales Up Nationally
& In Northeast
T
he U.S. Commerce Department this morning reported that new home sales during September increased 3.1% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 593,000 units, close to July's nine-year high.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast  single-family home sales,which account for about 9.8 percent of overall home sales, would fall to a rate of 600,000 units.
New home sales are volatile on a month-to-month basis, and subject to large revisions.
Sales increased 29.8% from a year ago. They rose in the third quarter compared to the second-quarter, indicating strong demand for housing. During September, new single-family homes sales surged 33.3% in the Northeast and 8.6% in the Midwest. Sales in the South climbed 3.4%, but fell 4.5% in the West, which saw a sharp increase in home prices and tight inventories. Meanwhile, the S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index measures all nine U.S. census divisions. It was up 5.3% on an annual basis in August, compared to 5.0% in July. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-City Composite index also rose 5.1% year over year, up from July's 5.0%.
Consumer Confidence Is Down
The Conference Board reported yesterday that
Consumer Confidence Index hit 98.6 in October, down from 104.1 in September.
Economists expected the index to hit 101.5 in October, according to a Thomson Reuters consensus estimate.
The survey is a closely followed  barometer of consumer attitudes, measures confidence toward business conditions, short-term outlook, personal finances and jobs. People who viewed business conditions were "good" decreased by more than 2%, to 26.2%. Those saying conditions were "bad" increased by nearly 2%, to 17.7 %, and people who said jobs were "plentiful" decreased to 24.3% from 27.6%. The Present Situation Index, which measures overall consumer sentiments toward the current economic situation, decreased to 120.6 (from 127.9 in the prior month). The Expectations Index, which measures sentiments for the next 6-months, declined to 83.9 from 87.2 in September.
IBANYS initiatives can provide value and bottom line benefits to New York community banks. Take a moment to review them.
We hope you take full advantage of these exciting opportunities.
ICBA & Dell Offering
Member Banks Preferred Pricing
Do you know that the
Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) and Dell Computers have an agreement in place that
allows community banks that belong to ICBA to take advantage of 
preferred pricing on computer equipment such as work stations, servers and laptops?
Participating banks will also have access to a dedicated account executive familiar with ICBA's program to advocate for them with appropriate Dell teams, including technical experts.
To check the October 2016 specials
Click here
.BANK Toolkit & Digital Campaign
IBANYS encourages New York community banks to take a look at
a digital campaign that fTLD has put together to raise the visibility of .BANK in the marketplace. ICBA asked us to pass along this opportunity for banks to join in with ICBA, ABA and the Financial Services Roundtable to promote .BANK. To view the campaign, view the toolkit and read nine different ads available for use, click on the link below, or cut and paste it into your browser.
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IBANYS and NYBDC have announced a partnership with Excelsior Growth Fund (EGF), a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution formed by New York Business Development Corporation (NYBDC). EGF is endorsed by IBANYS as the exclusive online lending partner for association
 members.
EGF provides innovative financial solutions and business advisory services to underserved small businesses in New York State through a fast, simple and secure online lending platform. Its core product is the EGF SmartLoan™, which features amounts up to $100,000, approvals within 1-2 days and disbursements within one week. Importantly, interest rates a fraction of those typically offered by online lenders.
EGF offers banks a unique customer retention solution when a customer either does not qualify for a bank's loan offerings, or is seeking the fast,
transparent process available through online lenders. To facilitate retention, EGF shares performance information on the referred loan portfolio on a quarterly basis and offers the opportunity for the bank to purchase referred loans at par at any time.
Additional details on the EGF SmartLoan, including eligibility criteria, are available at:
- We also joined the "Cure the Blue" effort to raise funds and awareness regarding prostate
 cancer in New York State. We are partnering with the Buffalo Bills Alumni Foundation, and hope to see a number of IBANYS members participate. Please join us in supporting this worthwhile cause. Visit www.curetheblue.com to get involved!
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IBANYS Webinars For
New York Community Banks
New York's community banks face a wide range of challenges. Officers, board members and employees need to understand their responsibilities -- and, potential liabilities -- are not about to diminish. They require the information and tools required to meet their responsibilities, and properly prepare the bank for the future. One way to assure this is to participate in
IBANYS' webinars -- tailored to the needs of New York community banks. The programs are both effective and cost-effective, and couldn't be more convenient! Community banks' officers, directors and employees participate directly from their offices. Over the past two years, the number of bankers participating in IBANYS webinars has risen dramatically increased. Find out why. Join
your industry and association peers and take full advantage of these timely webinars.
Review our upcoming programs by clicking the link below:
https://financialedinc.com/a/ibanys/category/live
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. . .James Paul Group
The James Paul Group specializes in providing solutions to the key challenges facing banks today in attracting, engaging, converting, and expanding customer relationships. They are skilled in delivering training and consulting solutions that give their bank clients the competitive edge required to achieve and sustain optimal profitability. For details on how they can help meet your consulting, sales training and training needs, contact:
Eric Scholnick,
Regional V.P at
(914) 671-5600, [email protected]. . .or, visit the website:
www.jamespaulgroup.com.
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. . .Who said this?
"Most commercial nations have found it necessary to institute banks, and they have proved to be the happiest engines that ever were invented for advancing trade."
Answer: Alexander Hamilton, in 1781
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New York community banks play a key role in our state and local economies. Help spread the good news among your customers, business and elected leaders and media!
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| Click here for quotes from Governor Cuomo and DFS Superintendent Lawsky extolling the performance and value of New York community banks. |
| Click here for the full NYS Study on community banking. |
| Click here to read IBANYS President & CEO John Witkowski's comments on the new tax changes and benefits for New York community banks as approved in the 2014-15 State Budget. Click here for IBANYS' letter to the Editor of Consumer Reports Magazine correcting failure to mention community banks as an alternative to using "big banks." _________________________________ |
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John J. Witkowski
President and Chief Executive Officer
Stephen W. Rice
Director of Government Relations and Communications
Linda Gregware
Director of Administration and Membership Services
William Y. Crowell, III
Legislative Counsel
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