FERNAND JST GERMAIN, RI, CHAIRIAAN HEWAY & GONZALEZ TEX EPH & MINISH, M FRANK ANNUNZIO ILL WALTER E FAUNTROY OC JERRY M PATTERSON CALIF JOHN J. LAFALCE MY. NORMAN & DAMOURS, N.N STAN LUINGINE NY MARY ROSE GALAR OHIO BRUCE VENTO MINN DOUG BARNARD JR. GA ROBERT GARCIA, NY. MIKE LOWRY, WASH CHARLES & SCHUMER NY. BARNEY FRANK, MASS. BILL PATMAN TEL WILLIAM & COYNE PA BUDDY ROEMER LA RICHARD H. LEMMAN, CALIF. BRUCE A MORRISON COMPL JIM COOPER, TEMAL MARCY KAPTUR, ONIO BEN EROREICH, ALA SANDER M. LEVIN, MICH, THOMAS & CARPER DEL ESTEBAN & TORRES, CALER Dr. Carol S. Greenwald National Connsumer Cooperative Bank 1630 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009 Dear Dr. Greenwald: As the result of your refusal to appear at oversight hearings on the National Consumer Cooperative Bank this morning it was impossible to hold the session and it will be necessary to recall all witnesses and further sums will have to be expended to carry out this effort. Your letter declining the Committee's request for testimony on May 25 was, indeed, cryptic and I do believe that you owe the members of this Committee a more complete explanation of why, at the last minute, you decided to turn down a month-old invitation. As indicated in my original letter to you of April 26, 1983 your testimony, in conjunction with other witnesses, is absolutely essential to the Committee in understanding and evaluating the operations and policies of the Bank during your tenure as President in 1980, 1981 and 1982 as well as in evaluating the responsibilities and duties assigned you under contract in 1983. Your testimony is now scheduled for 10 a.m., Tuesday, June 14 in Room 2128 of the Rayburn House Office Building. Please have delivered to the Committee offices, Room 2129 Rayburn House Office Building by 5 p.m., June 1, 1983 a written response indicating your availability to appear on this date. It is my intention to have the Financial Institutions Subcommittee receive testimony from you in this oversight hearing, and it is my further intention to convene the Committee and to institute the process necessary to require your testimony as outlined in this letter and my letters dated April 26 and May 24, if the Committee does not receive a written affirmative reply from you by 5 p.m. on June 1, 1983. FJSTG:sLs Sincerely, Joe Mesin Fernand St Germain Enclosures: Letters dated April 26, 1983, May 24, 1983 to Dr. Carol S. Greenwald FERNAND ST GERMAN R. CHAIRMAN HENRY GONZALEZ TEK JISING MINISH. NJ. BRAM ANNUNGO ILL STEPHEN FAL NC NORMAN ED AMOURS, NH. STAN LUNDINE NY MARY ROSE CAKAR ONIO BRUCE VENTO MINN DOUG BARNARD JR. GA ABERT GARCIA, NY MIKE LOWRY WASH. CHARLES & SCHUMER NY. BARNEY FRANK MASS. BILL PATMAN TEX WILLIAM COYNE PA BUDDY ROEMER LA LEMMAN, CALIF. BRUCE A MORRISON, CONN. JIM COOPER, TENN MARCY KAPTUR ONIO BEN EROREICH, ALA SANDER M LEVIN MICH THOMAS & CARPER DEL ESTEBAN & TORRES, CALIR Dr. Carol S. Greenwald The National Consumer Cooperative Bank 1630 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009 Dear Dr. Greenwald: As you know, the Financial Institutions Subcommittee of the Banking, Finance and Since you served as President during some of the most critical periods of the Bank's existence and since you continue under contract to NCCB, your testimony will be most valuable to the Committee in understanding and evaluating the operations and policies of the institution. We have scheduled your testimony for 10 a.m. Wednesday, May 25 Room 2128, Rayburn House Office Building. It is anticipated that Mitch Rofsky, the acting President and Frank Sollars, chairman of the board of directors, will also testify Wednesday morning and that members of the board of directors will be on hand to answer specific inquiries. As you know, the General Accounting Office is nearing completion of its program audit and the Farm Credit Administration the second of its examinations of the loan portfolios. We anticipate that both agencies will testify during the hearings and we will, of course, be most interested in your evaluation of the findings of GAO and FCA. We would appreciate it if you would have in hand any records, memoranda or other documents which will assist the Committee in analyzing your testimony and in understanding better the operations and development of policy during your tenure as president as well as your role as a consultant to NCCB. My staff will be in touch with you concerning specific material which we will want you to provide. Pursuant to the Committee's rules for the 98th Congress, you will be required to submit at least 150 copies of your prepared testimony to the Subcommittee offices no later than 24 hours in advance of your May 25 appearance. FJSTG:sLs Sincerely, Fernand J. St Germain At the outset, let me apologize for any inconvenience I have caused you, the members of the Committee, and the staff. I am sorry that an unexpected scheduling change required me to travel out of town on business. I honestly believed that my testimony would not be missed and that the other witnesses could answer any of your questions. I will, of course, be pleased to appear before the Committee to answer your questions. I will promptly call your staff to arrange a date for that appearance. Once again, my apologies for any inconvenience I have caused. Sincerely, Carol Greenwald Carol S. Greenwald Once again, I offer my apologies to you, your Committee members, and your staff for any inconvenience I have caused. I would be pleased to appear to testify on June 14, 1983. look forward to seeing you then. Sincerely, Carol Dr. Carol S. Greenwald CSG:dk THE NATIONAL CONSUMER COOPERATIVE BANK TUESDAY, JUNE 14, 1983 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON FINAN- Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met at 10:35 a.m. in room 2128 of the Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Fernand J. St Germain (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives St Germain, Barnard, Frank, Carper, Wylie, and Wortley. Chairman ST GERMAIN. The committee will come to order. The ranking minority member and I would like to apologize to everyone for our tardiness. As most of you who follow this committee know, we usually bang our gavel on time; however, the Supreme Allied Commander ask that we visit with him this morning and on a matter that was very, very important, so he sends you all his best wishes and thanks you for your patience, so that we could have that meeting with him. This morning we continue our effort to review the operations of the National Consumer Cooperative Bank during its formative years. Three weeks ago this subcommittee received testimony from the GAO and the Farm Credit Administration outlining severe deficiencies in the operations and the loan portfolio of this institution. The shortcomings must be corrected. Some of the problems have been well known inside the bank for many, many, months, and the time for change is now. In fairness it must be noted that the bank has indeed instituted some reforms. There have been staffing changes that have added experience in key areas. The bank has a new president, Tom Condit. Mr. Condit is long on banking experience, but short on co-op experience; however, in the brief 2 weeks that he has manned the ship, we have been impressed by his straightforward, no-nonsense approach, and I can certainly say that he and his staff have cooperated in preparing for these hearings in every way possible. But Mr. Condit's 2-week tenure is not the issue here today, it is the operations of the co-op bank since its birth in 1978. That is the focus of these hearings, and we cannot in all fairness expect the new president to participate actively in this phase of the oversight. (57) |