Attention all Debit card & Credit card customers:

Recently I had the opportunity to spend an interesting couple of days in Washington D.C. meeting with our regulators and congressional representatives. I was joined by some 35 other community bankers representing the smallest to the biggest banks in our state. This was the largest turnout ever for this annual event. This is probably reflective of our concerns for the economy and our industry.           Each of these banks is solely dependent on the viability of their local economies. We are not making our livelihood on hedge funds, investment banking or international trade. Our business is lending money to purchase homes, to invest in real estate, and to support local businesses. The talk around Washington and in the media is that banks are not lending. Nothing could be further from the truth. Every one of those 35 bankers discussed how they are trying to find good loans. In our business model we have to lend to be profitable. We cannot make a sufficient spread on investment securities to support our organization. Very simply, lending money is our business. We delivered this message to our legislators loud and clear.           The second message we delivered was the burden of regulation was harming our ability to service our customers. If you have ever applied for a secondary market home mortgage loan you will understand my comments. There is an imposing stack of documents that are required in this process. The forms used to explain, inform and protect the consumer can be confusing and at times contradictory. Regulations are expensive too. Probably over 10% of our total operating cost relates to complying with the rules and regulations. And the regulatory burden is getting heavier. This will negatively impact our ability to keep the cost to the consumer down and continue to support community activities. We understand the need for regulation and consumer protectionism. There have been too many unscrupulous players in the history of finance not to have a robust set of rules in place. The challenge we have is to balance these rules with cost effectiveness and being able to efficiently provide our services to our customers.           The most important lesson I learned from this Washington trip was to stay engaged in the process. As issues arise that are important, we as citizens have to speak up. Contacting your legislator in Washington or Indianapolis is easy. They all have websites that provide telephone numbers, mailing addresses and email addresses. While each new law is intended to protect us or right a wrong, it also has unintended consequences. It also makes our lives a little more complicated and chips away at our freedoms. Don’t just sit on the couch and complain when you don’t like what is happening in the political arena. Take an active role. Be sure to make your very important voice heard.   Larry W. Myers President & Chief Executive Officer First Savings Bank