Wednesday 28 November 2012

The Case for Banking in the Public Interest?

The following is from the Public Banking Institute the links to which can be found at the bottom of the page. Maybe of interest to readers.
 
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Public Banking -- it already works in the United States and is catching on! 20 States are considering some form of state banking legislation.

What's Happening in your State?

Find out by clicking on the map or here. Are you interested in starting a county-owned bank? Visit our new county bank webpage here.

Public Banks are ...

• Viable solutions to the present economic crises in US states.
• Counter-cyclical, meaning they are capable of reducing the negative impact of recessions, because they can make money available for local governments and businesses precisely when private banks decrease lending.
• Potentially available to any-sized government or community
able to meet the requirements for setting up a bank.
• Owned by the people of a state or community.
• Economically sustainable, because they operate transparently according to applicable banking regulations
• Able to offset pressures for tax increases with returned credit income to the community.
• Ready sources of affordable credit for local governments, eliminating the need for large “rainy day” funds.
• Required to promote the public interest, as defined in their
charters.
• Constitutional, as ruled by the U.S. Supreme Court

... and are not

• Operated by politicians; rather, they are run by professional
bankers.
• Boondoggles for bank executives; rather, their employees are
salaried public servants (paid by the state, with a transparent pay structure) who would likely not earn bonuses, commissions or fees for generating loans.
• Speculative ventures that maximize profits in the short term,
without regard to the long-term interests of the public.

Common Misperceptions of Public Banking

In every venue in which PBI has presented the case for public banking, we have heard very similar counter arguments against it. Read them here.

Read what Thomas Edison had to say about the government issuing money rather than bonds.

Why Public Banking?

Public banking frees the credit potential of public revenues and then harnesses this public wealth to create sustainable, abundant and affordable credit. This credit -- our credit -- supports our economy and citizens if it is then used to build economic capacity (think renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, etc. -- things that private banks do not fund).

PBI is committed to public banking becoming a mainstay of support for the new economy.


November Newsletter -- Public Banks Can Create 50 Wall Streets; A Banker Who Supports Public Banking

We're Making Progress -- Join Us!

As the Mayor of Fairfax, California, I know from firsthand experience how difficult it is these days for cities, counties and states throughout America to fulfill their obligations to their citizens because, like so many others, our investments have tanked. As a result, many are cutting back on essential services such as fire fighters, teachers and policemen.

I joined The Public Banking Institute as their Development Director, because the Wall Street bankers have taken enough and Public Banking is a proven strategy to localize credit and bring prosperity back to our local economies.

PBI has accomplished a great deal since its founding eighteen months ago. PBI has supported local teams in 18 states that have officially introduced legislative or initiative bills either to form state-owned banks or to do feasibility studies to determine their potential. PBI has created a research depository on their website as a resource for advocates. And the 2012 Public Banking conference “Democratizing Money, Restoring Prosperity” was sold out with people coming from over 15 states and Canada.

One of our presenters was 12-year-old Victoria Grant, whose 6 minute video now has had over 3 million views, but, to continue we need your support. The Public Banking Institute needs your financial support in order to continue to advance what can then become the public banking movement.

We are planning our 2013 conference on the West Coast and there is a lot of work ahead to establish city, county or state-owned banks. We need your support. Public banking runs the risk of continuing to be a good idea waiting to happen. We invite you to join us in this effort to make it happen.

I am part of a team of public banking advocates and, like them, am donating much of my time. Give now so that by this time next year we can say, "We did it!"

Pam Hartwell
Development Director
Public Banking Institute
www.publicbankinginstitute.org
Banking in the Public Interest

Youthful Speaker at PBI Conference Gets 2.5 million hits

Learn all about the 2012 Public Banking in America Conference here.
Bill Still, Secret of Oz

Did You Know ...?

Public banking was first introduced to the middle colonies in America by the Quakers in the original colony of Pennsylvania. Read about it on page 442 of Ben Franklin's memoirs. Other colonial governments also established publicly-owned banks. The concept was later embraced by the State of North Dakota, the only state to currently operate its own bank.

As of the spring of 2010, North Dakota was also the only state sporting a major budget surplus; it had the lowest unemployment and default rates in the country; and it had the most community banks per capita, suggesting that the presence of a state-owned bank has helped, not hurt, the local banks. More ...

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