STATE ISSUES
Bank Department Bills Introduced — ABA attorney Hamp Boles spent considerable time working with the Department to limit the application of this measure to banks during their drafting of HB 643 by Rep. Mike Hill (R-Columbiana), the Alabama Mortgage Act, and he succeeded. The bill, essentially aimed at mortgage brokers, exempts banks. It does, however, apply the registration procedure to a bank’s mortgage subsidiary. To our knowledge, that only applies to one ABA member. The Department’s intent is to get a regulatory hold on the mortgage industry outside of banking thru licensing and registration of mortgage brokers and those working in the mortgage industry.

They have also introduced HB 642 by Rep. Mike Hill (R-Columbiana) which removes mortgage lending from the Consumer Credit Act and the Mini Code as well as alter the licensing provisions.

***A SECTION BY SECTION SYNOPSIS ALONG WITH A COP OF THE BILL ARE AVAILABLE ON THE ABA WEBSITE UNDER THE GOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS SECTION AT WWW.ALABAMABANKERS.ORG.***

What’s happening in Montgomery? The Senate addressed the mandatory “sunset” bills which they are required to take up by the 10th legislative day. These bills approve the continuing operation of state boards and commissions. They will continue on with the some 33 bills next Tuesday.

The House spent all day Thursday debating a bill that updates current laws concerning the state's juvenile justice system. The bill finally passed and now goes to the Senate.

Gambling for Medicaid—This subject always produces plenty of debate in both houses of the Legislature. This year’s approach, HB 577 by Rep. Marcel Black (D– Tuscumbia), is to expand electronic bingo to the Birmingham and Mobile dog tracks (currently already in place at other dog tracks and White Hall facility), tax them at 20% of gross revenues with the funds earmarked for Medicaid (revenue projections are in the $55 million range) and prohibit future operations at other places in the state. The House is scheduled to debate this bill next week.

Immigration—This week, several House Democrats introduced a package of legislation on immigration. GOP Senator Scott Beason (R-Gardendale) already has a bill in the Senate as have some GOP members of the House. Obviously the change is that the majority party is now getting involved. The Democrat bills:

• HB 664 by Rep. Randy Hinshaw (D-Meridianville) - would give the state the authority to revoke the business license of a company that knowingly hires illegal immigrants. Assigned to House Judiciary Committee.
• HB 665 by Rep. Locy Baker (D-Abbeville) - would make it a crime to transport illegal immigrants into the state. It applies to people who transport illegal immigrants in private vehicles. It does not applyto such public transportation as commercial buses or airlines.
• HB 666 by Rep. Lea Fite (D-Jacksonville) - would prohibit municipalities from passing ordinances that would set up their towns as a haven for illegal aliens.
• HB 667 by Rep. James Fields (D-Cullman) - would allow police to detain individuals stopped for a traffic violation who can't prove their legal status.

Beason’s bill, SB 426, called the Alabama Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2008 would:

1. Require anyone who lives out of state and commutes to a job in Alabama to obtain an "Alabama verified employee identification card" that would be issued by the Department of Public Safety.
2. Prohibit Alabama employers from hiring anyone who doesn't produce one of three state-issued IDs, including the Alabama verified employee identification card, an Alabama driver's license or a non-driver Alabama identification card.
3. Require employers to verify proof of legal status of all employees
4. Make it a discriminatory practice to fire a U.S. citizen while retaining a known illegal immigrant.
5. Fine anyone with a false Alabama ID $5,000 for each false ID.
6. Deny bond for anyone whose immigration status cannot be confirmed.

The legislation also carries some hefty fines for business. For every employee lacking one of the forms
of identification, employers would be fined $500 on the first charge. On the second offense, the fine jumps
to $5,000. The third time, the employer would have its business license revoked for one year in addition to the $5,000 fine per employee.

ABA legislative package

The Alabama Bankers Association has submitted three bills for passage this session:

1. Bank Impersonation bill—HB 478 by Rep. Vance (D-Phenix City) and SB 149 by Sen. Bedford (D-Russellville) - This bill restricts the use of lender information that is publicly available including loan numbers, amounts and trade names in solicitations for services or products without the consent of the lender. Both bills are out of the banking committees in their house of origin.
2. Lost Note bill—HB 399 by Rep. Hill (R-Columbiana) and SB 273 by Sen. Griffith (D-Huntsville) - This bill codifies a Supreme Court decision that an assignee of a creditor may enforce a lost note just as the creditor could. Both bills are out of the banking committees in their house of origin.
3. Commercial Property Redemption bill—HB 272 by Rep. Hill (R-Columbiana) and SB 267 by Sen. Griffith (D-Huntsville) - Currently, all property is subject to a one-year right of redemption to the owner. This bill removes that the redemption period for commercial property. The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee substituted a version of HB 338 by Rep. Ford (D-Gadsden) for Sen. Griffith’s bill this week. SB 267 now reduces the right of redemption on commercial and residential property to six months. We will now push the Griffith and Ford bills.

Federal Issues

CURIA-Lite Introduced in the House
WASHINGTON – Reps. Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) and Ed Royce (R-Calif.) this week introduced a new credit union regulatory relief bill (H.R. 5519) that includes several of the Credit Union Regulatory Improvements Act's (H.R. 1537) less-controversial provisions, as well as some new provisions. The legislation, among other things, would permit federal credit unions to add service to underserved areas regardless of the original field of membership; exclude loans to religious organizations and to businesses in undeserved areas from the member business lending cap; permit credit unions that convert to community charters to retain their select groups under certain circumstances; and allow federal credit unions to provide short-term payday loan alternatives to nonmembers within their field of membership.

Senator Landrieu to Introduce CURIA in Senate
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu (D – LA) told credit union attendees of the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) Governmental Affairs Conference this week she will introduce a Senate version of the Credit Union Regulatory Improvements Act. Sen. Joe Lieberman (I - CT.) will co-sponsor the credit union bill, which is identical to the House version, H.R. 1537. The American Bankers Association (ABA) sent a letter to the Senate asking Senators to not cosponsor this bill.

Sen. Dole Introduces Sarbanes-Oxley Relief Act
Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.) this week introduced the Regulatory Relief and Fairness Act (S. 2703) that would allow qualified insured depository institutions to voluntarily opt out of preparing Section 302 certifications, and Section 404 internal control management reports and auditor attestations required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Dole said the costs of these requirements -- while well intentioned -- outweigh the benefits. "We can preserve the rigorous oversight of the nation's banking industry without these unnecessary and costly regulations," she said. ABA applauded the senator's efforts to reduce the regulatory burden. Its institutions are already closely regulated, ABA said, and this reporting is duplicative of the management reporting required under the FDIC Improvement Act.