NASBP’S Recent Accomplishments in Washington, DC

I’m pleased to report that NASBP’s theme, “Make Every Minute Count,” for my term as President was practiced in spades earlier this month during an action-packed three days in the nation’s capital. The fast-paced schedule of absorbing meetings and events brought value to the surety industry and NASBP members.

Day One focused on a new addition to NASBP’s Industry Relations activities–an outreach to the banking industry. As a result of NASBP becoming a Corporate Member of the Independent Community Bankers Association (ICBA) in May, NASBP’s CEO, Mark McCallum, and I spent 60 productive minutes in ICBA’s Washington, DC headquarters for a personal meeting with Rebecca Romero Rainey, Mark’s counterpart at ICBA. We discussed numerous potential benefits for members of both organizations, such as networking opportunities, reciprocal educational programs, and the use of performance and payment bonds to reduce risk when funding private construction projects. In fact, building an alliance with ICBA offers an opportunity to include its members in a portion of each NASBP Regional Meeting this fall, since part of the programs will include a panel on the importance performance and payment bonds can play for lenders on projects they fund. For those who aren’t familiar with ICBA, its membership consists of community banks across the country whose mission is very similar to that of NASBP. You can learn more about ICBA, including its member community banks in your area, at its website at https://www.icba.org/.

Day Two marked the start of the joint NASBP and Surety & Fidelity Association of America (SFAA) Legislative Fly-in. Larry LeClair, NASBP’s Director of Government Relations, and others in the energetic Bethesda headquarters worked feverishly on plans for the Fly-in, including a panel discussion of senior congressional staffers drawn from key U.S. House Committees, together with constituent meetings at Senate and House of Representative offices. Part of the planning effort was devoted to arranging an added benefit this year–visits with top-level officials at the GSA and SBA, two federal agencies closely connected with and impacted by the surety industry. The Fly-in officially commenced with an informative evening reception for Fly-in participants, where one of NASBP’s past presidents and the Chairman of the SuretyPAC, Howard Cowan, reminded participants about a vital ingredient for successful surety-related government relations programs–political action committees (PACs). He briefly described the value PAC contributions play in the legislative process. You can learn more about the NASBP SuretyPAC, including how to authorize the SuretyPAC to solicit your firm for contributions, by clicking here.

Day Three started early. Due to the hard work of Larry and assistance from NASBP’s Government Relations Committee Chair, Brian Ayres; Vice Chair, Monica Donatelli; and SFAA’s complementary efforts, almost 60 congressional offices visits were made for producers, surety underwriters, and association personnel. This year we had more attendees than at recent fly-ins. One reason for the good turnout was that, for the first time in our industry’s history, it was jointly sponsored by NASBP and SFAA and attended by NASBP and SFAA members! This collaborative effort, which consumed every minute from dawn to dusk, successfully delivered our message–helping Congress and federal officials clearly understand the surety industry’s current legislative initiatives. In this issue of Pipeline, Larry has outlined these initiatives, including his observations of the meeting with officials of the SBA (pictured) with the Acting SBA Administrator, Christopher M. Pilkerton, and William Manger, Associate Administrator for SBA’s Office of Capital Access. Also, be sure to read the “CEO Comments” in this issue, where Mark provides a rundown of the meeting with officials at the GSA.

At the concluding Fly-in reception, Brian Ayres told me he feels the Legislative Fly-in is one of the most impactful things he can do for the surety industry. His statement that “We will be in trouble as an industry if we are forgotten by the people who make our laws and regulations” was the perfect way to sum up the importance of “Making Every Minute Count” during the Fly-in for the industry we cherish.

John Bustard is Executive Vice President of King & Neel, Inc. in Honolulu, HI. He can be reached at john@kingneel.com and 808.539.5419.