Pub. 11 2016-2017 Issue 5

www.nebankers.org Extraordinary Service for Extraordinary Members. ■ Bert Ely — continued from page 21 To contact Bert Ely, email bert@ely-co.com , phone (703) 836-4101, fax (703) 836-1403, or send mail to P.O. Box 320700, Alexandria, Va. 22320. If your bank belongs to the American Bankers Association (ABA), you can enjoy a free email subscription to FCW or you can read it monthly online at www.aba.com . To receive FCW by email or to manage your subscription, visit ABA Member Email Bulletins at www.aba.com/Tools/Ebulletins/Pages/default.aspx . For other inquiries, please contact Barbara McCoy at the ABA at (800) BANKERS or bmccoy@aba.com . It is highly unlikely that any of CyrusOne’s lessees are engaged in agriculture. All of CyrusOne’s 35 data centers are located in major metropolitan areas, so there is absolutely nothing rural about its activities. farms with annual farm sales above and below $250,000, and gross farm revenues by type of revenue—crops, animals, farm-related, and direct government payments. However, the report is highly misleading regarding the FCS’ YBS lending. First, the report perpetuates the double and triple counting of YBS lending—a loan to a farmer who is 35 or younger (a young farmer), with 10 or less years of farming experience (a beginning farmer), and with gross annual agricultural sales of less than $250,000 is counted three times in the FCS tally of its lending to YBS farmers. Second, although the report noted that YBS data is reported annually on the volume of new YBS loans made during the year as well as outstanding YBS loans at year-end, the report given to the FCA Board only presented data on new YBS loans as a percentage of all new FCS loans. No data was provided on a much more important statistic: the amount of loans outstanding at year-end to YBS borrowers as a percentage of total FCS loans outstanding. As the June 2016 FarmCreditWatch reported, evenwith the FCS’ double and triple counting of its YBS lending, FCS lending to YBS farmers and ranchers has declined in recent years, which is not surprising given the FCS’ increase in very large loans. AgriBank Interim CEO Gets the Job Outright As the August 2016 Farm Credit Watch reported, on July 29, 2016, AgriBank, one of the four FCS banks providing funding and other services to FCS associations, announced the sudden “departure” of its long-time CEO, Bill York. No reason was given at the time as to why the 62-year-old CEO suddenly departed the bank. AgriBank’s retired vice president and general counsel,WilliamThrone, was named interimCEO on Aug. 1, 2016. On Nov. 15, 2016, AgriBank announced that Throne would “assume the role of CEO,” effective Dec. 1, 2016. There was no indication of the nature of the search process that led to Throne’s designation as CEO or any explanation as to why York suddenly departed AgriBank in July. Report FCS Lending Abuses Bankers are continuing to send FarmCredit Watch reports of FCS lending abuses such as FCS loans for rural estates, weekend getaways, and hunting preserves. Email reports of similar lending abuses in your market to green-acres@ ely-co.com . Best Wishes for the New Year Farm Credit Watch wishes its readers as well as their families, friends, associates, and customers the very best for the holiday season and the new year. I join with America’s taxpaying bankers in hoping that the FCA will become more aggressive in 2017 in cracking down on FCS lending viola- tions as well as other FCS violations of the Farm Credit Act, especially those committed by CoBank. Hopefully, Congress will impose the appropriate constraints on FCS lending when it enacts the next Farm Bill. 