Pub. 11 2016-2017 Issue 6

March/April 2017 7 Extraordinary Service for Extraordinary Members. PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE NBA Leaders Serve Nebraska ■ President’s Message — continued on page 11 Richard J. Baier, President & CEO, Nebraska Bankers Association A S I CONTEMPLATEDMY THOUGHTS FOR THIS EDITIONOF THE NBA magazine (past deadline as usual), I suddenly foundmyself choosing between several relevant top- ics. Rather than choose, I decided to address a couple of them in short fashion, so please excuse my ramblings. Three Banker-Legislators This month’s cover photo is of our three Nebraska bankers that currently serve in the Nebraska Legislature, America’s only single-house legislature. Special thanks to Sens. John Stinner, Matt Williams, and Rob Clements for their willingness to set aside their personal lives and busi- nesses to serve the citizens of Nebraska. Sens. Stinner and Williams are beginning their third year in the Legislature while Sen. Clements was recently appointed by Gov. Pete Ricketts to fill an unexpired term. Sens. Stinner and Williams are both past chairmen of the Nebraska Bankers Association, while Sen. Clements previously served on the NBA Government Relations Com- mittee and Voluntary Employees Beneficiary Association (VEBA) Board of Trustees. Not a week goes by that your NBA team does not receive unsolicited positive comments from other organizations, senators, and statewide elected officials about how fortunate the banking sector is to have such distinguished public servants offering common sense leadership on the many complicated state policy topics. Sen. Stinner currently chairs the Appropriations Com- mittee. His experience and background in banking and accounting are invaluable as this committee develops strategies for confronting the state’s $900 million shortfall. Sen. Williams serves as vice chairman of the Banking, Com- merce, and Insurance Committee, in addition to the Health & Human Services and Planning Committees. Both Sens. Stinner and Williams are sponsoring affirmative legislation on behalf of the NBA during the current legislative session addressing various policy issues such as banking regula- tion, executive officer licensing, and workforce housing. Sen. Clements sits on the Appropriations Committee and is quickly using his banking and actuarial skills to help sort through the many demands placed on the state’s budget.