With Capital Summit underway, ICBA releases new polling on policy priorities

ICBA today is kicking off the 2024 ICBA Capital Summit in Washington with the release of new polling data showing Americans support community banker views on the pressing issues attendees will be discussing with policymakers this week.

Polling Results: The ICBA polling conducted by Morning Consult found:

• 70% of Americans say providing tax relief to lending institutions in rural communities — in line with the bipartisan Access to Credit for our Rural Economy (ACRE) Act — would help preserve family farms if these benefits are passed along to borrowers.

• 66% of adults say allowing big merchants to pick card transaction networks that are the least costly to them — as laid out by the Credit Card Competition Act (S. 1838/H.R. 3881) — would lead them to choose less secure networks.

• 68% of adults say credit union customers should have the same consumer protections that banks provide, such as those provided by the Community Reinvestment Act.

• 64% of Americans agree that the SAFER Banking Act’s provisions allowing cannabis-related businesses to access the banking system would help improve public safety.

• 69% of Americans support legislation to restrict credit reporting agencies from selling consumers’ contact information when they apply for a residential mortgage.

• 63% of adults say cryptocurrencies should be regulated at least as stringently as banks, while 60% say a U.S. central bank digital currency would negatively affect community banks.

Grassroots Push: With community bankers meeting with policymakers in Washington this week, ICBA is calling on community bankers across the nation to send messages to their lawmakers on key advocacy issues regardless of whether they are attending the Capital Summit in person. Top issues include calling for credit union hearings, supporting rural America, reining in regulatory overreach, and opposing credit card routing mandates.

Speakers: This year’s Capital Summit will feature remarks from Dave Fishwick, whose story inspired the Netflix hit “Bank of Dave;” Senate Banking Committee member Jon Tester (D-Mont.); House Financial Services Committee Vice Chairman French Hill (R-Ark.); FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg; and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra.

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