1 November 29, 2012

VIA FAX (202) 289

- 4101

and E

- MAIL: webmaster@asc.gov

Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council

Appra isal Subcommittee

Attention: Lori Schuster

1401 H Street N.W.

Suite 760

Washington, D.C. 20005

Re: Appraisal Subcommittee; Proposed Policy Statements; Docket No. AS12

- 16 (the “NPR”)

Response of The Risk Management Association’s Chief Appraiser’s Roundtab le

Dear Ms. Schuster:

This letter comprises the response of participants of the Chief Appraiser’s Roundtable of

The Risk Management Association (“RMA”) to the above

- referenced NPR. RMA is a member

driven professional association whose sole purpose is to advance the use of sound risk principles

in the financial services industry. RMA helps its members use sound risk principles to improve

institutional performance and financial stability, and enhance the risk competency of individuals

through informatio n, education, peer

- sharing and networking.

One of the most important components of RMA's mission is to provide independent

analysis on matters pertaining to risk and capital regulation. In this regard, the comments

contained herein are informed by su bject matter experts from member institutions of RMA’s

Chief Appraiser’s Roundtable. The Chief Appraiser’s Roundtable (the “CART”) is an ad hoc

working group formed by RMA to facilitate peer

- sharing among RMA member institutions with

respect to issues of importance to and affecting appraisers. The participants of the CART are

listed in Attachment A to this letter. They are listed for identification purposes only. This letter

does not necessarily represent the views of RMA’s institutional membership at la rge, or the

views of the individual institutions whose staff have participated in the CART.

Proposed Policy Statement 2 set forth in the NPR is designed to replace current Policy

Statement 5 (Temporary Practice) and is intended to address the second ar ea of review in the

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ASC Compliance Review Process pertaining to temporary practice for compliance with Title XI

of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989, as amended.

According to the NPR, the languag e in current Policy Statement 5 concerning the

requirements of an appraiser to register for temporary practice in a State to perform a “technical

review” is not included in Proposed Policy Statement 2 because that text has been deemed

unnecessary and outda ted. While the term “technical review” is not defined in the Policy

Statement, it is a term of art that is well understood and generally accepted and, importantly,

relied upon in the appraisal industry. We respectfully request that the Appraisal Subcommi ttee

reconsider including the following language of current Policy Statement 5 in Proposed Policy

Statement 2:

For federally related transactions the review appraiser need not register for

temporary practice or otherwise be subjected to the regulato ry jurisdiction of the

State agency in which the appraisal was performed, so long as the review appraiser

does not perform the technical review in the State within which the property is

located

.

The removal of the foregoing language from Policy Statement 5 is being interpreted by

many of our members as potentially requiring reviewers employed by financial service

institutions to acquire state licenses or temporary practice permits in order to review appraisal

reports of properties located in stat es where they are not currently licensed.

Policy Statement 5 as presently effective provides the foundation upon which federally

regulated institutions permit their reviewers who are licensed or certified to perform appraisal

reviews in states where they are not certified providing they don’t enter the subject property

state. If this statement is removed, and in the presence of a state law requiring local certification,

there is no authority to rely upon for this standard and necessary industry practice. Our member

institutions and their employees comply with the law[s] of the state where they are domiciled, the

states where they directly provide services, and federal law and regulatory guidance. The

members of the CART have consistently considered Stat ement 5 as federal guidance and have

relied upon it to support the way that the member institutions conduct business.

The removal would significantly increase complexity and costs for federally regulated

institutions and significantly hamper interstate commerce. This would result in an unintended

negative impact to federally

- regulated financial services institutions and the consumers they

serve.3 November 29, 2012

While the Appraisal Subcommittee may not feel it has the jurisdiction to address

ind ividual state licensing, the national effect of the existing patchwork of individual state

requirements and the resulting impact on interstate commerce is certainly within the purview of a

federal organization. We respectfully request that Proposed Policy Statement 5 be retained and

modified only as necessary to satisfy the express requirements of the Dodd

- Frank Act.

Thank you, on behalf of the CART, for the opportunity to comment on the Proposed

Policy Statement. The CART would be pleased to engage in a dialogue about our response.

Please contact us should you have any questions.

Sincerely,

James M. Nelson, CRC,

Director, Credit Risk4 November 29, 2012

Attachment A

The members of the CART that participated in the preparation of this letter are listed below. They are

provided for identification purposes only. This letter does not necessarily reflect the views of RMA’s

institutional membership at large, or the views of the individual institutio ns whose staff have participated

in the drafting or reviewing of this letter.

Astoria Federal Savings & Loan

Bank of America

Bank of the West

Banner Bank

BBVA Compass

CapitalOne Bank

Comerica Bank

First Merit Bank

Hancock Bank

M&T Bank

OneWest Bank Renasant Bank

Sterling Bank

Synovus

TD Bank

The PrivateBank

Trustmark National Bank

Union Bank

U.S. Bank

Washington Trust Bank

Wells Fargo

Whitney Bank