June 8, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E 1197

through 12th grade, and the selection of education materials and staff development activities for the professional staff of the district.

Mr. Speaker, it is with pride that I rise to salute a recognized and respected educator,

Richard Pulice. I ask my colleagues to join me

in paying tribute to him for his outstanding

commitment to public education, and to wish

him luck on all his future endeavors.

KENSINGTON CONGREGATIONAL

CHURCH CELEBRATES ITS 100TH

fANNIVERSARY

HON. THOMAS M. FOGLIETTA OF PENNSYLVANIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, June 7, 1995

Mr. FOGLIETTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today

to salute the Kensington Congregational United Church of Christ in Philadelphia on its

100th anniversary.

The Kensington Congregational Church has

witnessed many changes throughout the

years. Under the watchful eye of Reverend

Alan Reider, the church has maintained its

commitment to its members and its community. The Kensington Congregational Church

has 68 faithful members and draws a standing

room crowd every Sunday.

The church offers provides the youth in its

congregation with great opportunities through

programs such as Sunday School, Bible

School, Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops. The

congregation also helps those in need with its

Emergency Food Cupboard. Last year, the

Kensington Congregational Church helped

feed 576 families—nearly 1,500 people.

In recent years, the church has also opened

its doors to the community at large, hosting

meetings to address problems affecting Kensington. The congregation has worked with

community activists to address problems ranging from drug abuse to flooded streets.

I hope my colleagues will join me today in

wishing Rev. Alan Reider and the congregation of the Kensington Congregational Church

a very happy 100th anniversary. I wish the

Kensington Congregational Church the very

best in its next 100 years of service.

THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE

NORTHERN CENTRAL NEW YORK

fVOLUNTEER FIREMEN’S ASSOCIATION

HON. LOUISE McINTOSH SLAUGHTER OF NEW YORK

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, June 7, 1995

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today

to pay tribute to the village of Fairport’s firefighters for hosting the 100th Anniversary Convention of the Northern Central New York Volunteer Firemen’s Association. The Northern

Central Volunteers have provided an invaluable service not only to volunteer firefighters

throughout upstate New York, but also to the

many people whose lives they have protected.

I am pleased that my home village of Fairport

is playing such a significant role by hosting

this important event.

The Northern Central New York Firemen’s

Association was created in 1895 when William

Weedsport and a few other volunteer firefighters between Rochester and Syracuse met

to discuss issues relative to firefighters in their

region. Since then, they have been a local adjunct to the Fire Association of New York

State. The Northern Central New York Volunteer Firemen’s Association has worked very

closely with its State association to promote

and protect the interests of firemen for the

past 100 years.

The Northern Central delegation’s contribution to the history of firefighters in New York

State has been immeasurable. Three of the

presidents of the Firemen’s Association of

New York State and one president-elect have

come from the Northern Central Association in

the past 15 years. Several of the Northern

Central Volunteers have also served as trustees and presidents for the Firemen’s Home in

Hudson, NY.

The Rochester delegation of the Northern

Central Volunteers also has a long history of

leadership. After the Second World War, the

Northern Central volunteers grew in membership and geographical area. Seneca, Ontario,

Oswego, Steuben, and Yates Counties were

added to the existent membership in Cayuga,

Monroe, Onondaga and Wayne Counties.

Sam Pitcher of Fairport, Joey Kuhn of Penfield

and Lavern Barrett of Lyons were instrumental

in adapting the Northern Central Firemen’s Association to this dramatic growth. By writing a

new constitution, creating new committees

such as the Public Relations Committees, establishing new honors such as the Fireman of

the Year Award, and launching new program’s

such as the Ladies Day Program, they and all

of the members since 1895 have helped carry

the Northern Central volunteer firemen into the

21st century.

Mr. Speaker, we should all be thankful for

the courage and commitment to the safety of

the people of New York State that the Northern Central volunteer firemen have displayed

over the past 100 years. Please join me in saluting their service to our Nation.

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE

AMENDMENTS OF 1995

fHON. BILL McCOLLUM OF FLORIDA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, June 7, 1995

Mr. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, I rise to introduce the Federal Deposit Insurance Amendments of 1995, which addresses the weak

condition of the Savings Association Insurance

Fund [SAIF] and the risk that it poses to the

U.S. taxpayers. This is an issue that must be

addressed this year.

Currently the SAIF insured institutions are

required to pay the interest and carrying costs

on the Financing Corporation [FICO] debt.

This obligation has been continuously diverting

larger portions of the SAIF premiums from

ever reaching the SAIF. Under the current

structure two problems exist. First, if the SAIF

deposits continue to shrink it is likely that

there will not be enough money to meet the

FICO obligation. Second, there will not be

enough money to protect the taxpayer from

losses associated with the thrift fund.

Today I am proposing a comprehensive solution to the SAIF problem. It addresses meeting the FICO obligation and providing an adequate cushion for the taxpayer.

My proposal requires that when the Bank Insurance Fund [BIF] exceeds the 1.25 percent

designated reserve ratio any excess monies

be rebated to the banks. This reestablishes

the rebate that existed prior to the enactment

of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Improvement Act.

In order to safeguard the taxpayer, my proposal assists in the SAIF capitalization by

spreading the FICO obligation across the BIF

and the SAIF in proportion to the insured deposits held by members of the respective

funds. My proposal also extends the availability of funds appropriated for the Resolution

Trust Corporation [RTC] to cover losses from

SAIF members until the SAIF reaches the

designated reserve ratio. This should assure

that the SAIF reaches the designated reserve

ratio in a timely manner.

The interest earned by the BIF will be used

to pay for the BIF insured institutions’ share of

the FICO obligation. The remainder of the interest will be paid into the BIF and may be eligible for rebate.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency [OCC] and the Office of Thrift Supervision [OTS] will be merged on January 1,

1996. My bill in this regard is similar to Chairman LEACH’S proposal introduced earlier this

year.

Upon enactment of this proposal, the Treasury Department will be required to complete

within 12 months a study on combining the

bank and savings association charters into a

unified charter.

This bill specifically requires the Treasury to

consider issues concerning taxes consequences, Federal home loan bank membership, regulation of holding companies, and

mutual ownership. The Treasury will also be

required to report back to Congress with a legislative proposal as part of this study.

Finally, when the SAIF reaches the targeted

reserve ratio of 1.25 percent, the BIF and the

SAIF will be merged into one fund. Within 12

months of this merger, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation [FDIC] shall require that

all insured institutions have a bank charter

whether the new unified charter, State or other

bank charters.

My solution does not affect the reduction in

premiums that BIF insured institutions are

scheduled to receive. The BIF will be fully

capitalized this year and the FDIC is required

to reduce BIF members premiums. Nothing in

my solution or any other potential solution to

the SAIF problem should jeopardize this reduction. The FDIC should move expeditiously

to finalize the required reduction in premiums.

When the Congress passed Federal Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act

of 1989 [FIRREA] to address the clean-up of

the savings and loan crisis, it was based on

faulty assumptions. The Congressional Budget

Office [CBO] and the Office of Management

and Budget [OMB] predicted thrift deposits

would continue to grow at 7 percent annually.

In reality, the SAIF insured deposits have decreased at an average rate of approximately 5

percent per year. Based on the CBO and

OMB estimates the SAIF should have a $1.3

trillion deposit base. However, there is only

$721 billion from which to derive premiums.

One of the results of the faulty assumptions

is that the FICO interest payments continue to

divert larger percentages of thrift premiums

each year from reaching the SAIF. The FICO

obligation is sizable, diverting $795 million per