Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council	Press Release
For Immediate Release	April 19, 2000

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council announced today the appointments of Nicholas J. Ketcha Jr., Director of the Division of Banking in the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, and Steven D. Bridges, Commissioner of the Department of Banking and Finance for the State of Georgia, to the Council's State Liaison Committee. They will replace Massachusetts Commissioner Thomas J. Curry and Tennessee's Commissioner Bill C. Houston whose terms are expiring. The two-year terms of the new appointees will begin May 1, 2000 and expire April 30, 2002.

The Council also announces that the Conference of State Bank Supervisors has re-appointed Utah Financial Institution's Commissioner G. Edward Leary to a second two-year term.

The State Liaison Committee members who continue in service are Iowa's Superintendent of Credit Unions James E. Forney and Texas' Commissioner of the Savings and Loan Department James L. Pledger.

The Examination Council was established by Congress to promote uniformity among the five Federal financial supervisory agencies in the supervision and examination of the federally chartered or insured institutions under their supervision. The State Liaison Committee is composed of five representatives of State agencies that supervise State-chartered financial institutions. The State Liaison Committee was established to encourage the application of uniform examination principles and standards by State and Federal supervisory agencies.