Happy New Year, everyone! As I write this, we are enjoying an open winter with highs approaching 50 degrees this week. What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time, my quarter-mile driveway and turn-around felt more like 5 miles and looked more like a snow tunnel than a paved driveway. Absent the cold snap a couple weeks ago, it’s been a very mild winter. I hope I haven’t jinxed it by commenting too soon as there’s plenty of winter left.

ICBND Chairman Jason Johnson, in his Chairman’s Remarks on the previous page, commented about the ongoing battles at federal level and the upcoming ICBA Convention (March 14-17) and the ICBA Capital Summit (April 28 – May 1). These are great events to network with your counterparts across the country and advocate for community banking in Washington, DC.

Closer to home, we are proud of the calendar of events that Jessie and Lindsay have assembled for 2024. If you’ve not already received them, you will be getting “Save the Date” postcards for our 2024 educational events and a separate postcard for the 56th Annual ICBND Convention. A summary of those events is as follows:

• January 30-31 Front-Line Banking Certification, Virtual
• March 1 Emerging Leaders – Winter Session, Grand Forks
• February 23 Community Bankers for Compliance – Reg. Update, Virtual
• April 16-17 Community Bankers for Compliance – Spring Session, Bismarck
• May 1-2 Women in Community Banking Summit, Bismarck
• May 10 Community Bankers for Compliance – Reg. Update, Virtual
• May 22 FDIC Directors College, Bismarck
• June 10-14 ICBND School of Agriculture Lending, Bismarck
• June 25-26 Emerging Leaders – Summer Session, Medora
• August 13-14 ICBND 56th Annual Convention, Bismarck
• August 16 Community Bankers for Compliance, Reg. Update, Virtual
• September 24-25 Emerging Leaders – Fall Session, Jamestown
• October 1 Policies & Procedures Session, Bismarck
• October 2 Fraud Symposium, Bismarck
• October 15-16 Community Bankers for Compliance – Fall Session, Bismarck
• November 8 Community Bankers for Compliance – Reg. Update, Virtual
• Ongoing Education Webinars Powered by FinEd, Virtual

We appreciate your support of past events and are hopeful to see you and your coworkers at some of these exciting and informative upcoming events.

Keep the faith through the rest of the winter and we look forward to seeing you soon!

Barry

BISMARCK, ND – The National Servicing Center of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has once again ranked North Dakota Housing Finance Agency (NDHFA) as a Tier 1 Federal Housing Administration loan servicer. The ranking for fiscal year 2023 marks the agency’s sixth consecutive year to receive this recognition.

The HUD ranking system evaluates FHA servicer compliance with guidelines, intervention requirements, loss mitigation engagement, and reporting, aiming to safeguard borrowers and alert HUD to potential issues. An important indicator of servicer effectiveness is the work-out ratio, demonstrating the ability to work with delinquent borrowers and prevent foreclosures.

Dave Flohr, executive director of NDHFA stated, “This distinction underscores our ongoing commitment to helping homeowners work through financial challenges. Homeowners who experience financial difficulties work with NDHFA staff one-on-one to navigate these issues, preserving the stability of their homes.”

Out of 624 participating FHA servicers nationwide, NDHFA was one of 147 loan servicers ranked as Tier 1. NDHFA achieved an impressive FY2023 score of 94.06%, reflecting an increase from the previous year’s score of 91.92%. The agency currently services approximately 12,400 loans, with 50% being FHA guaranteed.

Known for affordable mortgage loans as well as down payment and closing cost assistance through the FirstHome™ program, NDHFA services its own loans as well as loans for the Bank of North Dakota and local nonprofit housing providers.

Flohr stated, “NDHFA provides affordable home financing that can help individuals and families of modest means achieve and maintain their dream of homeownership.

NDHFA is a self-supporting and mission-driven state agency dedicated to making housing affordable for all North Dakotans. The North Dakota Industrial Commission, consisting of Gov. Doug Burgum, as the chairman, Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring and Attorney General Drew H. Wrigley, oversees the agency. More information about NDHFA is available online at www.ndhfa.org.

For Immediate Release                                                                                                   December 27, 2023

Bank of North Dakota Loans Replenish Cattle Herds

BISMARCK, N.D. – Bank of North Dakota (BND) reports that approximately 16,000 head of cattle were replenished in the state with the assistance of the Livestock Rebuilders Loan Program in 2022 and 2023. It was established to strengthen the livestock industry after the 2021 drought when beef cow numbers decreased by 89,000 head. The program closed June 30, 2023.

The drought created hay shortages, forcing producers to purchase and transport hay from other states. A statewide drought disaster was declared. The Livestock Rebuilders Loan Program was part of a suite of programs rolled out by the state including the Emergency Feed Transportation Assistance Program administered by the North Dakota Department of Agriculture and the Livestock Drought Loan Program administered by BND.

“The state’s response to the 2021 drought is an example of what makes North Dakota so successful,” said members of the Commission in a joint statement. The Commission, consisting of Gov. Doug Burgum as chairman, Attorney General Drew Wrigley, and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring, oversees BND. “We are able to work with key stakeholders who determine needs and state agencies that work together to respond quickly, and that sets us apart from so many others.”

The loan was available for up to a seven-year term with a fixed interest rate of 3.50%.

Local banks and credit unions serve as the loan program conduit for BND programs. For this effort, 32 different financial institutions, and a total of 58 branches within them, accessed the program for their customers. There were 196 loans made for a total loan amount of $26,650,860, of which BND funded $18,549,013.

“Once again, our local financial institutions deserve a great deal of credit for facilitating the disaster relief loan for their customers,” stated BND President/CEO Todd Steinwand. “As a local lender, they know their customers better than anyone. They provided valuable input as we developed the terms of the loan, and then applied for the funds on behalf of their customers who qualified.”

The Bank’s mission “to support agriculture, commerce and industry” has not changed since its earliest days in 1919. The Bank of North Dakota is the only state-owned bank in the nation.

For more information: Janel Schmitz BND Communications & Marketing Manager 328.5880

Karen Tyler, Executive Director and Secretary

Reice Haase, Deputy Executive Director

State Capitol, 14th Floor - 600 E Boulevard Ave Dept 405 - Bismarck, ND 58505-0840 %20ktyler@nd.gov">E-Mail: ktyler@nd.gov

Phone: (701) 328-3722

www.nd.gov

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I hope this message finds you recovering from the Thanksgiving holiday. Typically, it’s my favorite holiday involving good food, family, friends, and football. Stacey and I had a quiet one, however, this year as two of our daughters, our sons-in-law, and their kids were with the in-laws. So, we put up Christmas decorations (well…Stacey did), relaxed and dined on a typical Thanksgiving staple - lasagna! We’re planning our revenge however by ruining our four grandkids (with another on the way) at Christmas!

As I look back on 2023, I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to represent you all and the interests of community banking in North Dakota and nationally. And I’m proud of our accomplishments this past year at the 68^th Assembly of the North Dakota Legislature.

During the Regular Session, your association, which exclusively represents the interests of community banking, fared well. ICBND and especially its member bankers were instrumental in the defeat of the retail lobby’s efforts to limit interchange fees. Similarly, we squashed the credit unions’ aggressive and expensive campaign to expand their fields of membership. And we were also successful in defeating the most problematic of the anti-ESG bills.

At the federal level, the FDIC recently ruled (3-2 vote) that community banks with less than $5 billion in uninsured deposits will be exempt from its special assessment to replenish the Deposit Insurance Fund due to the failures of SVB and Signature Bank. This will rightfully save community banks nearly $3 billion over the next two years. Absent the advocacy and credibility of community bankers and their associations, I suspect there would have been a different result.

Moving forward, I’m thankful for the direction that your ICBND and ICB Services Boards of Directors provide us as we advocate for the best interests of community banking. I appreciate the time and effort that these dedicated individuals provide for the betterment of community banking.

Finally, I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Until next time,

Barry

I hope you are enjoying a glorious fall in North Dakota. This is easily my favorite time of year. I hope we can hold onto it into November! Wishful thinking…I know.

Just this afternoon, news broke that the North Dakota Supreme Court struck down a key budget bill – that of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This is the funding bill for much of state government and was the last bill to be finalized during the most recent Legislative Session. And it often gathers other “cats and dogs” that aren’t necessarily budgetary in nature (i.e. last chance to impute policy issues). Therein lies the rub, at least for the board overseeing North Dakota’s government retirement plans. The OMB bill included a change that increased the number of lawmakers who sit on the board from two to four. The board opposed this and challenged its constitutionality. Given the court’s ruling, the Legislature will need to convene. They could reconvene using the five days they saved from the 80-day constitutional limit. Or Governor Burgum could call a special session. Either way, it will have to be quick! One just never knows what might crop up on an otherwise run-of-the-mill Thursday!

While we’re already into the last quarter of the year, please keep in mind that we still have a couple very timely educational sessions remaining on the 2023 calendar including “Community Bankers for Compliance Fall Regulatory 2-Day Seminar” on October 17-18 and the “Real Estate Construction Lending Workshop” on October 25-26 which is back by popular demand. We’re also in the planning stages of some new and exciting educational offerings for 2024 so stay tuned!

Until next time,

Barry