Pub. 14 2017 Issue 3

O V E R A C E N T U R Y : B U I L D I N G B E T T E R B A N K S - H E L P I N G N E W M E X I C O R E A L I Z E D R E A M S 6 During the special session, the Legislature enacted and the Governor signed SB1 which increases the general fund by $100.4 million with $81.4 million in capital outlay swaps and $19 million in other state fund swaps. ROB NICHOLS, PRESIDENT AND CEO American Bankers Association WASHINGTON UPDATE Tax Reform: A Hard Job Worth Doing N othing in Washington that is worth doing is easy, and tax reform is no exception. There is no doubt that our tax code needs a rewrite. As Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation points out, since our last overhaul in 1986, our economy has nearly doubled in size, and the internet and global- ization have fundamentally changed the way we do business. Today’s tax code fails to recognize these changes, puts us at a global competitive disad- vantage (the combined state and federal U.S. corporate tax rate of more than 39 percent is two and three times higher than that of “competing” countries) and ultimately hinders job and economic growth. The good news is that leaders in the House, Senate and White House agree on the need for tax reformand are committed to its enactment. While that creates a solid foundation for this important effort, we all know it will take forti - tude and persistence to change a tax code that now spans 74,000 pages. ABA is strongly in favor of tax reform that strengthens economic growth and creates jobs. A stronger economy would be good for the country, our members, and their custom- ers. We have made ourselves a resource to the lawmakers and staff who are at the center of