Reflecting on a year that saw many positive legislative and regulatory changes for the banking industry, outgoing ABA Chairman Ken Burgess urged bankers to remain engaged in advocacy as these changes are implemented.
“If you’ve never written a comment letter before, get your pencils out — make sure they’re sharp,” Burgess said in his year-in-review speech at ABA’s Annual Convention today. “You’ll need to weigh in to make sure regulations are crafted in the smartest way possible.”
Burgess highlighted several examples of how banker-led advocacy has made a difference in the years since Dodd-Frank was passed, including efforts to rescue the FDIC’s Deposit Insurance Fund, advocate for right-sized regulation and encourage new bank formation. In all of these examples, “bankers were the key ingredient to successfully making the case for better policy,” Burgess noted. “It’s bankers who offer the real-world context and bring the message home.”
