Earlier this month, Rep. French Hill (R-AR), held an exclusive Zoom visit with leaders of Friends of Traditional Banking. The House Financial Services Vice Chair said that control of the US House of Representatives will be determined this fall by swing districts in California and New York. If the Republicans maintain the majority, he is interested in serving as House Financial Services Chair, noting that it would be the first time since World War II that a banker has served as chair.

Rep. Hill, the former Delta Trust & Banking Corporation founder and CEO, said that we need to continue to support traditional banking in America, which he noted Alexander Hamilton called "the nurseries of the national wealth."

Janice Houghton, chair of the board of StonehamBank, has been selected to represent Massachusetts on Friends of Traditional Banking's Nationwide Banker Board. Houghton, who for nearly 20 years was StonehamBank's president and CEO, holds a BA from Trinity College, Washington D.C. and graduated from the School of Mortgage Banking Graduate School, Institute of Financial Education. Prominent in civic affairs, Houghton is a past president of Stoneham's chamber of commerce and Rotary Club and has been named Stoneham's "Citizen of the Year." FOTB is fortunate to have her experience and perspectives.

A recent poll by Morning Consult on behalf of the American Bankers Association revealed public opinion on key issues regarding banks and Congress. Some of the findings included:

Only 21% support the government making changes to the debit card system

Only 12% think retailers will lower prices if the Federal Reserve further caps interchange rates

64% think it’s reasonable for banks to charge a fee for an overdraft

65% are aware that customers can opt out of receiving overdraft protection at any time after they’ve accepted the service

69% said they prefer that their bank offer overdraft protection as an option to customers whether there is a fee or not

67% said that Congress should examine whether credit unions are providing enough community benefit to warrant their existing tax exemption

80% are unaware credit unions do not pay taxes

63% support allowing cannabis businesses to access banking services

See the full release of the survey HERE.