Posted on 04/22/2010 7:21:22 PM PDT by billorites
USAA members and friends are urged to contact U.S. Senate regarding financial services legislation.
USAA is facing a serious challenge due to financial services legislation, known as S.3217, that is being considered by the U.S. Senate right now. We are reaching out to our members, employees and friends in an effort to share details about how the proposed legislation would impact USAA, and we are asking them to take action. Legislation Links S.3217 As Filed S.3217 Committee Summary S.3217 Committee Report
A message from USAA President and CEO Joe Robles that provides more details is being e-mailed to members. Please take a moment to read the message and take action.
USAA is unique because we are a member-owned association that focuses on the needs of the military and their families. Please help us defend the association we share together. Contact your U.S. senators and urge them to amend a portion of the bill known as the "Volcker Rule," to eliminate its effect on a company like USAA.
We will provide regular updates in this Newsroom and via social media including USAA's Facebook and Twitter sites.
The Volcker Rule
The "Volcker Rule," as drafted in Section 619 of the Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010 ("the Senate bill"), gives regulators the discretion to limit and prohibit certain investment activities of financial services companies, like USAA. In particular, this bill directs regulators to prohibit government insured depository institutions from engaging in "proprietary trading," whereby a company trades for its own account. However, the reach of the bill extends beyond the bounds of a depository institution to its affiliates and subsidiaries. For insurers that own banks or thrifts, like USAA, this could mean that all of the investment activity essential to the running of the insurance operations would be significantly limited to investment in only government securities, despite these operations already being heavily regulated by state insurance regulators. The result would be that products that require more robust investments to support them would be limited to government securities, which do not earn enough to keep the cost of such products affordable.
To illustrate this effect, insurers collect premiums from customers in return for a promise to pay a possible future claim. During the time between the collection of premiums and the claims payout, the insurer takes those premium dollars and invests them in order to ensure that funds exist to pay later arising claims. By limiting an insurer's investments to government securities, that insurer may not be able to generate the income necessary to continue offering its products at affordable rates. This could then result in the need to charge higher premiums on policies and pay less favorable rates on annuities.
I'm not sure, but I think the NRA may have tried to contact me, maybe left a message on my machine, once...
Everyday I get up and thank heaven that I have USAA insurance for house, auto, etc. and enjoy the products offered by the USAA bank.
If they are screaming about the financial reform bill there must be something big-time odious about it. They avoid political positions pretty consistently.
And from the CEO...
USAA CEO ROBLES: Please Contact Your U.S. Senator Today
Posted on Apr 22, 2010 | Category: From the CEO
Rarely in our 87-year history have we turned to USAA members to weigh in with elected representatives on an issue of great importance. But, we are now.
The U.S. Senate currently is considering legislation (S.3217) that would impose new rules on the nation’s financial services industry, including USAA.
As the leading provider of financial services to America’s military community, USAA supports financial services reform.
However, the current Senate bill would disproportionally impact USAA because we are a unique and fully integrated association. USAA is not like the banks and other companies that helped bring down our economy, and we never took a penny of TARP funds. We do not engage in the harmful practices this legislation seeks to resolve.
If unchanged, the bill would:
* Prevent USAA from managing the association’s portfolio as we have for the past 87 years.
* Jeopardize our ability to continue offering many of our competitive products.
* Limit our ability to return money to our members. Last year, USAA returned $1.2 billion to our members in the form of distributions, dividends, and bank rebates and rewards.1
So, we are asking all USAA members and employees to urge their U.S. senators to amend a portion of the bill, known as the “Volcker Rule,” to eliminate its effect on a company like USAA. Please know that this legislation does not impact individual member’s investments.
Regardless of the outcome of the legislation, USAA will remain a unique and enduring association that’s all about you — the military and their families.
Please take action on this matter by immediately contacting your U.S. senator. You may click here to access a special website that will enable you to quickly send an e-mail message to your senator.
Thank you for your help and support,
Joe Robles Signature
Josue (Joe) Robles Jr.
Major General, USA (Ret.)
President and CEO
Just got the same in an e-mail.
I agree. Been a USAA member since the mid 60s and sent my letter to Cornyn and Hutchinson just a minute ago. And you are right, I have never seen USAA request its membership’s political involvement and have to believe that they would not in this instance if not pretty serious and potentially harmful to the company and its clients.
It’s the first time I’ve ever heard them appeal for help like this as well.
I sent the letter from the USAA site, thanks for posting.
I’ll need to forward this tomorrow to all the retirees and active duty folks I know who use or may use USAA.
The unintended consequences of the Credit CARD Act of 2009 (which had tons of populist support) will be absolutely terrible for the consumer and for business in the U.S..
The unintended consequences of the “financial reform” bill will be 1,000,000 times worse.
The more something is regulated, the more it costs and the less available it becomes.
Keep in mind that the same people who caused the crisis are now proposing far-ranging legislation to prevent the next crisis.
This legislation will only serve to empower the people and their cronies who caused the crisis, not to prevent another crisis from happening.
You cannot legislate morality, as the saying goes.
Enforce the laws that are on the books... that’s all we need to do.
I just read my email from USAA. I think I’ll forward it to the Republican congressional candidate in my district in addition to my senators.
THe govt may be intending to eventually default on Tbills, agency debt, and national debts in the future, and wants the sufferance to fall on the holders of the Tbills and agency bonds to the greatest extent possible. All the discussion about inflation, deflation without including devaluation and default suggests that that will be the intended mechanism. The financial reform bill is designed to create the largest bagholder group in history among other deleterious things. The suspected demand that 401ks and IRAs be converted to Tbills and agency bonds is related to this same purpose. Bad Tbills and agency debt to be is being dumped on the ignorant and unsuspecting, and overruled.
Govt. will, by legislation, force the bagholders to be to actually become bagholders of piles of junk to be.
I just got this in my email just a few minutes ago.
This is the best Co. I have ever dealt with. God bless them and we will help them !!!
Same here. USAA is top flight...but we Vets deserve it.
Who are they? I have been getting spam mail from them or some site like that and I have just deleted them without reading them.
I’ve been with USAA since 1976. First time I’ve ever received something of this sort from them, as well.
The clown car in charge of Washington, DC is about to crash, I swear.
I sent one to McCain but, I suspect he got the same emailing.
Agreed and answered.
I later learned that USAA had set up a "separate group" to handle other than Officers.
This was extremely disappointing so USAA can pound sand in my book.
That is the first that I had heard that they set up a different group for officers. Interesting.
I sent mine out to my two worthless Senators already - easy to do with just a few clicks and filling in some blanks - but I don’t think either Lautenburg or Menedez can read, so.......
Got the same email, too. Was shocked reading it. Scary stuff.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.