'All Politics Is Local' Gets Charleroi Federal's Vote

Charleroi Federal Savings Bank is nestled in the quaint town of Charleroi in the southwestern part of the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The bank dates its heritage to 1938 and has often been viewed as a window on the community. Service to the community has been and always will remain the main

Over the years, the town of Charleroi has been blessed to have a number of its local citizens serve in Congress. For more than 40 years, whether through Congressman Doc Morgan, Congressman Austin Murphy or Congressman Frank Mascara, our views and opinions were heard throughout the halls of Congress. Although no Charleroi residents are currently serving in the Congress, Charleroi Federal continues to be very active in the legislative arena and intends to renew its friendship with newly elected officials.

Our local elected officials, be they members of Congress, the State Senate or the State House of Representatives, have always looked to the bank for information and advice on many pieces of legislation. They are anxious to take the pulse of the public and, more importantly, understand the effect of legislation upon the local bank and our community.

In the words of former Speaker of the House tip O'Neill, we believe that "all politics is local." There are many ways of approaching and reaching out to your elected officials. One of the most successful involves planning a well structured meeting and inviting the representative to come directly to your bank's community.

Breakfasts or luncheons are effective ways to meet members of Congress or your state legislators to discuss financial issues. Involving other local banks can help broaden the discussion, though no more than four or five should participate. Our experience shows that meetings should not be long and should be limited in attendance to no more than two senior officials from each institution.

Just recently, Charleroi Federal held a roundtable meeting with a member of Congress in a community bank centrally located to the four banks in attendance. In this meeting, free from the distractions of Washington, we all expressed, among other items, the priority issue of credit unions and their "unfair advantage" over community banks. Despite the fact that the congressman privately agreed with our position, he recognized openly the powerful credit union lobby. As bankers, we should learn from this observation. We need to become more political.

This meeting was a typical example of how representatives are willing to talk in an intimate "non-threatening" setting. This conversation was eventually parlayed into other discussions where the congressman was more sympathetic to our issues.

The one item our bank has learned over the years in dealing with members of Congress is the importance of education. We have discovered that once the politicians are educated on any issue regarding the banking industry, you become their first resource for information before any bill comes up for a vote. However, continuity with representatives in Congress can be a challenge, since elections are held every two years.

Another way Charleroi Federal remains active on the federal and state level is through constant communication with the legislative committees of America's Community Bankers and the Pennsylvania Association of Community Bankers.

ACB is a valuable resource of policy and advocacy for its members through its convenient Web site, priority issues brochures, and planned trips to Capitol Hill. When we meet with local legislators, it is very common for them to ask about the specific priority issue brochures that explain our position regarding various issues such as credit unions, deposit insurance reform, and regulation of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, just to name a few. Obviously, the staff must be appreciated for getting our message out.

Our state organization, the Pennsylvania Association of Community Bankers (PACB), headed by Frank Pinto, is equally valuable on the state level for political involvement. The PACB understands the importance of community banks and realizes the variety of risks our market faces every day. PACB organizes dinners, events and meetings at the local level, inviting legislators to hear our major issues.

For example, an issue that was brought to our attention from PACB was the possibility of the elimination of the mutual thrift tax in lieu of a corporate net income tax brought about by a deficit state budget, an item New Jersey has already implemented. This proactiveness on PACBs part has made us aware of the need to communicate our concern to the local state representative.

Additionally, Charleroi Federal understands the importance of COMPAC and FIRST PAC, the political action committees of ACB and PACB respectively. We know that funds are necessary to ensure that pro-business and more specifically pro-community bank candidates have the resources they need to get elected or reelected. The contributions truly maximize the impact of community banks like ours by supporting candidates who are willing to listen to us and address our concerns.

Once again, we follow Tip O'Neills lead by stressing a strong branch presence with local politicians. Charleroi Federal has eight locations in four counties, and we encourage our branch managers to know their local leaders. Branch managers are also required to join and be actively involved with their respective Chambers of Commerce and other organizations. Our chairman, Melvin B. Bassi, was solicitor for Washington County for over 25 years and was appointed county commissioner for two years to succeed Frank Mascara when he was elected to Congress. In addition, many of our branch managers are current or former school board members and are quite involved in their local municipalities.

Todays community bankers have the opportunity to be as active as they want to be in the national, state and local spotlight. We should all remember that real estate agents, insurance agents, brokers, lawyers, and so forth are members of Congress. They sit and make decisions about our industry. Can you name me one banker who sits in Congress and expresses our views from the inside? You get the picture: Government affairs should be a top priority if we are interested in preserving our industry.