Pub 1 2012 Issue 2

March 2012 7 Leading advocate for the banking industry in Kansas. T HIS 29-PAGE GUIDE, DEVELOPED WITH THE INPUT OF BANK- ers like you, provides detailed information on 12 key implementation items for 2012. Each issue is explained in terms of why it matters to community banks and what to watch out for. Just as important, the guide examines each issue from the standpoint of how bankers can get involved and help shape the outcome. Take the issue of capital, for example. As the guide ex- plains, the advocacy challenge is to sensibly dial back capital requirements while ensuring stable sources of capital. Sounds reasonable. The challenge, however, is a big one, since every indicator in the regulatory and legislative spheres, as well as public sentiment, points to requiring more bank capital. We’ve got to continue to tell, and sell, our story: That increasing capital requirements is a drag on banks’ lending, which hurts communities across the country. Capital is just one of the dozen issues we’ve highlighted in our guide. There are also Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rules, FDIC coverage and the assessment base, housing finance, and the qualified mortgage and qualified residential mortgage rules, the Volcker Rule, and more. Please read the guide, share it with others in your bank and get involved in shaping these important issues. Don’t hesitate to tap into ABA’s staff expertise (1-800-BANKERS) and our tremendous online resources, such as our up-to-the- minute ABA Dodd-Frank Tracker (www.regreformtracker. aba.com) . AMERICAN BANKERS ASSOCIATION MESSAGE You can also look to us for sup- port through peer networking, training and education, and products and services. The challenge for our industry is not to put the Dodd-Frank Act behind us, but to stay out in front of it. Working together, we can do that. Washington Update Staying Ahead of Dodd-Frank We’ve got another big year ahead for Dodd-Frank Act implementation. To help bankers stay out in front of this regulatory freight train, we’ve published and mailed to community banks our latest resource, “Dodd Frank & Community Banks: Your Guide to 12 Critical Issues.” By Frank Keating , President and CEO American Banker’s Association Reach Frank Keating by E-mail at keating@aba.com .