In Brief: House Panel Opposes Additional Exam Fees

The House Banking Committee on Thursday adopted a resolution urging fellow lawmakers to reject new bank exam fees.

The Clinton administration, as part of its 1999 budget request, has proposed that state banks pay for exams conducted by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and that bank holding companies pay inspection fees to the Federal Reserve.

The plan, widely opposed by the industry, would cost banks $89 million next year. The administration has repeatedly included the fees in its annual budgets, but Congress has refused to go along.

"This proposal would increase the cost of credit for individual borrowers and businesses," the panel said in its budget recommendations. Imposing new fees on state-chartered banks would be "an assault on the nation's historical dual banking system," the committee added.

The panel also endorsed the administration's plan to provide $18 billion in additional credit for the International Monetary Fund.

-Bill McConnell

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