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PAGE 10 - INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY BANKERS OF SOUTH DAKOTAIF THERE EVER WASA TIME . . . . IT’S NOWTax Exemptions Need Review- by Lynn PetersonI’ve spent some time in Pierre during theLegislative Session this year trying to raise awarenesson the fiscal impact to the State Budget from the taxexemptions that Farm Credit Services and creditunions in South Dakota enjoy. Across-the-board,our State Legislators agree that these exemptionsshould be reviewed. The challenge is that nothing can really be changedat the state level to make a difference – changes must occur on the federallevel. Many bankers have made the trek to Washington, D.C. to share thismessage with our South Dakota delegates, but we haven’t made muchheadway due to the powerful representation that these tax exemptorganizations have in D.C. But, if there’s ever been a time that taxexemptions are going to be under scrutiny, it’s now!We understand the issue, but it’s amazing how few South Dakotan’sactually do. Tax exemptions were justified when these entities werecreated, but they’ve grown beyond their intended purposes in both sizeand scope. Combined, Farm Credit Services and credit unions are a $4.5billion dollar industry, have grown by 42.5% and South Dakota missedout on $16 million in bank franchise tax in the last 5 years, alone. Creditunions no longer serve ‘people of modest means’ and Farm CreditServices no longer serves ‘young, beginning and small borrowers.’We’ve put together a brief presentation that should be sharedwith every bank board of directors, with all bank employees, serviceclubs, school boards and any other group or organization that’s beingaffected by decreasing revenues from the state and federal government.The presentation is available to be downloaded at the ICBSDwebsite, icbsd.com; click on ‘legislation’ and ‘tax exemptions legislativepresentation.’ We must bring this issue to the attention of South Dakotansand through grass roots efforts; it needs to be heard in Washington, D.C.I truly believe change can and will occur, however, there must be supportfor this to happen at the state level in order to get our folks in Washingtonon board. Please do not hesitate to call me for any help I can give on thissubject or to help with giving presentations in your community.Lynn Peterson is the Senior Vice President of CorTrust Bankin Yankton. He is also ICBSD’s Legislative Co-Chair and a formerBoard President of the ICBSD. He can be reached at 668-0800 orlpeterson@cortrustbank.com2012 ICBA WASHINGTON POLICYSUMMIT – IT’S NOT TOO LATE…If you’ve thought about attending the Washington PolicySummit in the past, take a moment to seriously consider goingthis year. ICBA has lowered the registration fee to $150 for thesummit, which will be held April 24-26 at the Gaylord Resort &Convention Center on the Potomac. The ICBSD will reimbursethe registration fee for up to 8 bankers who attend the summit.While South Dakota’s ICBA committee members as well asICBSD’s Board President, Executive Director and Lobbyist willall be attending, community banking’s voice needs to be heard inWashington, D.C.! For further information, including lodgingdetails, contact the ICBSD Office. Space is limited so please actquickly to reserve your spot.LOBBYISTREPORT- By Dean KrogmanThe 2012 LegislativeSession started slowly,however there are currently496 bills and resolutions.You will recall last year’ssession revolved around the budget and resultedin numerous cuts to services, providers, andeducation. Fortunately, the state’s economicpicture has improved so budget cuts are notbeing discussed this year. In fact, the debatehas been about restoring funding through onetimebonuses for state employees; increasedreimbursement rates for Medicaid providers;restoring some resources for higher education;and additional funding for K12 education. K12education funding has been linked to newperformance measures and an effort to increasethe number of math and science teachers. Theseproposals have sparked significant reactionsthroughout the educational system resulting indelayed implementation to allow key stakeholdersto be involved in the specifics. All ofthese measures depend on continued growth inrevenues including the bank franchise tax whichhas decreased from $48.7 million in FY2009 to$15.2 million in 2012.Here’s a quick overview of three billsaffecting banking that ICBSD monitored:*SB 64, An Act to revise provisionsregulating the perfection of security interestlines filed online. This bill has passed both theHouse and Senate and was signed by theGovernor and states that a lien is perfected if ithas been noted on the title and entered into theelectronic title file system.*SB190, An Act to permit the filing ofcertain agricultural lien documents with theOffice of the Secretary of State by electronicmeans. This bill was proposed by the SDAssociation of Grain and Feed Dealersregarding liens for Ag input suppliers with theintention of amending it to include ‘nonconsensuallien’ language. The bill was Tabledin Senate State Affairs at the request of thesponsors.*SB158, An Act to create an exceptionto the loan or credit limitations of statechartered banks. This bill allows banks toexceed their lending limit by 25% on an annualexception basis with approval from the StateBanking Commission for Ag lines. ICBSDsupported this bill which had passed the Senateunopposed and was headed to the HouseCommerce and Energy Committee.Dean Krogman is the Lobbyist for ICBSDYou can reach Dean at 605-695-3497 ordkrogman@sdsma.org