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SAMPLE LETTER

    -- Use this letter as a guide to draft your letter.

The Honorable (Full Name)

United States House of Representatives or United States Senate

Address

Dear Senator (last Name): or 

Dear Mr./ Mrs./Ms./Representative (Last Name) ________________________:

As a small business constituent, I am writing to ask for your help with critically urgent problem confronting my own business and many others around the country. A substantial number of banks have arbitrarily terminated their business relationship with check-cashers, payday advance operators and title loan operators on a wholesale basis, as an entire class, without reasonable justification, and many times with extremely short notice. For example, Amsouth Bancorp, a major bank in the southern states, recently terminated its relationship with check cashers, payday advance operators and title loan companies across the board, many of whom had of stores enjoyed a sound relationship with the bank for decades.

This is wrong, and should be stopped. Banks are citing costly anti-money laundering requirements by the OCC, responding to indications from regulators that they are at high risk for money laundering and require an enhanced compliance program and significant monitoring. We believe these banks are overreacting to this concern in a manner which discriminates against many vulnerable consumers. I ( manage/own) (insert number of stores) stores in (insert locations), and employ over (insert number of employees). I serve hundreds of your constituents every week.  These are people who depend on my stores being open for their personal financial business. While many have checking accounts with banks, many do not by personal choice. For many other people, we are the only regulated financial institutions that serve this segment of the population.

Frankly, I can't operate my business without a bank.  Not many businesses could, today. If our stores are forced to close because of a bank termination, not only will my employees be out of work, but our customers, your constituents, will be deprived of freedom of choice for their financial needs. The OCC has argued that "we don't tell banks who they should serve" but the OCC can't wash its hands of the impact of its decision. Check-Cashers serve consumers that banks have refused to serve. In fact, their federal charter requires banks to serve their communities.

I strongly urge that you contact the OCC and other banking regulators to make clear that financial institutions should not jettison entire industries as a compliance strategy. We do not question the right of a bank to open, maintain, or close a specific customer relationship. Rather, we object to policies which discriminate against entire industries and result in disenfranchising an entire segment of the community. Terminating an entire industry is not a sound compliance strategy.

Your help in this matter would be greatly appreciated. I look forward to your reply to learn how you can respond to this financial crisis

Sincerely.

INSTRUCTION LETTER FROM RICKY MYERS TO MISSISSIPPI CHECK CASHIERS -- January 30, 2005

    -- This letter was sent to Mississippi Check Cashiers along with the above letter.

Dear MCCA Member

Most of you are aware of the bank discontinuance problems we have experienced in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and Florida. This problem is not just a regional problem but a national problem. Almost every day a check casher reports to FiSCA that their checking account is being closed by their bank. The calls come from states in the north, south, east and west, cities of large and small populations. Bank discontinuance has no territorial boundaries. It does not seem to matter if you are payday loan or a MSB we seem to all be grouped together. The MCCA Board of Directors has approved our association joining an alliance with the Mississippi Title Loan Association, Title Pawn Council of Alabama, Modern Financial Services of Alabama, Financial Service centers of Florida, Tennessee Check Advance Association and the Tennessee Title pledge Association. In a FiSCA board of directors meeting in January, I agreed to put together a grass roots network to start writing letters to Congress followed by meeting with every Senator and Congressman in the four states. I will be working in conjunction with the FiSCA Legal staff, FiSCA Washington Lobbyist, MCCA Lobbyist Irb Benjamin, MCCA Attorney Shawnassey Britt, attorneys/ lobbyist/ industry leaders from Mississippi and the other states.

We must receive relief from the Bank Secrecy Act and the Patriot Act. The Office of Currency Control and the Office of Thrift Supervision both of which are divisions of the U.S. Treasury have through regulation caused banks to feel that it is easier to discontinue service to check cashers rather than to subject themselves to more frequent and stringent exams. If you have not already experienced some inconvenience from bank discontinuance in the past it is likely you will in the future. I ask that each of you join in the grass roots network to get relief from Congress. If you will write a letter to your local Congressman the two Senators it would be a big help. I have enclosed a sample letter for you to go by. Please write your letter in your own words and just stick to the points in the sample letter. Please fax your letter to the senator or Congressmans Washington office with a note on it that you are mailing the actual letter to their local office. Another way you can help is to visit your Congressman when he is at home in the district. Local visits in his/ her district office are usually very casual and it's easier for the Congressman to give you his/ her full attention.

All the success we have had in the past was due to our grass roots network. It worked on the state level and it will work on the national level, it just takes every one of us working together. Myself and the Lobbyist can do very little, however you guys working together as one voice can do anything.

It is important that we get letters out ASAP if you have any questions about the letter writing campaign or questions about bank discontinuance please call me or one of the Board Members at the Phone numbers listed below.

Thanks for your help,

Ricky Myers MCCA President