i opened up an account in that north dakota bank. that's one reason north dakota has the lowest unemployment rate in the country, because they not only is the bank there to help you, but they have insurance programs and funding programs to make sure the people, and there are some competition for the banks. there is no competition here for the banks. whatever they want to do, go ahead and do. if we had a municipal bank and a state bank and had competition for the banks who won't stop sitting on all that money. because that is the world's to go, they will start working with some of the people because they're not going to make no money just sitting on it. i think this is one of the best things we can do -- open up a bank here and have some competition where people have other places they can go and the banks will start dealing with a lot of people now they won't even deal with. i am so glad this is being pushed. i'm the one to holler about it -- you can go up and down third street and ask every businessman, i've never been able to get a l

what advocates of the bank of north dakota and public banking have pointed out is that the state of north dakota has a low unemployment rate, 3.2%, and they achieved budget surpluses during the last couple of years. the recession starting 2008. and then have been able to extend credits after 2008 when we saw the credit freeze on the part of private banks, affecting public agencies and many small businesses and other enterprises. finally, and last point, related initiatives. this gets to be rfp question. there was some discussion about it, including a requirement in the rfp being prepared by the treasurer and tax collector's office for banking services and whether or not the city could make a requirement or provide extra points in scoring bidders if they're providing a higher level of investment for the local community. and there is some concern, and the city attorney has expressed an opinion on that it may not be allowed under state law. however, our conclusion, after talking to the city attorney, if it is a voluntary activity that the banks are asking simply to present that information,

the partnership bank, which is the model used by the bank of north dakota, is not too involved in the retail activity of the banks. they largely loans to smaller local banks, who then in turn do more of the retail operations. we understand the bank of north dakota does have some direct deposits and some retail customers as well, but it is a pretty small portion of their business. a little bit more on the bank of north dakota, how they're came to be just one in the country. it was started in 1919, part of the populist movement, and it was to make funds available to a lot of small towns and farm communities. those who were not able to access craddock through traditional banks. they're called a partnership bank, because they have about

your understanding north dakotans are quite happy with that i mean the bankers in north dakota are quite happy with the bank or north dakota because it serves as the central bank for the state they make cheap liquidity available for the local banks they partner with the local banks they do guarantee the local banks loans and that allows local banks to make much bigger loans and were secured loans then they went out their rights right well having a public bank doing utility functions in the banking sector. would of course increase the competition in that sector and it would create a nice healthy competitive economy but america and the u.k. for the most part hate competition. and they preserve they rather have the rent seeking and the monopoly profits of a kleptocratic class and we're seeing the result of that now on the federal level let's talk about the federal reserve for a second the idea of putting it underneath the treasury reporting to the treasury a suggestion made by dennis because senator recently what are your thoughts on this i think it's better to nationalize the federal reserve then to eliminate

he wants the bank modeled after north dakota's state bank which has been operating more than 90 years>> and sacramento mayor has been wwol for one in five counsel meetings this year. the sacramento bee says kevin johnson skipped more meetings than any other elected official in the city since 2001. missing his age on october 11. a spokesman says his boss never miss aid crucial vote, absent from one meeting to attend a movie screening at 9 white house, on another occasion had to give a speech at harvard business school. >> prosecutors concluded their case against dr. conrad murray. they have questioned 33 witnesses. murray pleaded not guilty but has admitted giving jackson the powerful anesthetic as a sleep aid. abc has more from los angeles. >> during cross examination the prosecution witness the defense attorney held up an iv bag and other devices trying to discredit him. a propofol expert testified dr. murray carelessly administered the powerful anesthetic. in the fourth day on the stand the defense lawyer tried to undermine the testimony question how long under mr. schaeffer's versi

the same well we only have one probably thinks that we can use that for the bridle that's a bank or north dakota and they they operate very honestly and the reason is first of all they have no motive to they're not getting bonuses these commissions they're just understand and their mandate is to serve the public so they have no motive to . do exploited to thinks that politicians don't have control over the bank in that sense and that's in my melas there is no occupy north dakota campaign at this time is that your understanding the north koreans are quite happy with that i mean the bankers in north dakota are quite happy with the banker northstar because it serves as the central bank for the state they make cheap liquidity available for the local banks they partner with the local banks they do guarantee the local banks loans and that allows local banks to make much bigger loans and were secured loans then they went out their rights right well having a public bank doing utility functions in the banking sector. would of course increase the competition in that sector and it would create a nice healt

and just as open space does not devalue surrounding private property, a public bank like the bank of north dakota does not undermine the need for credit and lending services provided by the private sector. in fact, it makes for a healthier private banking system. i urge you to continue to demonstrate leadership in this very important opportunity. supervisor avalos: thank you very much. are there any other speakers? seeing no one come forward, will close public comment. i would like to thank everyone for their participation. the stories, the different parts of the economy and from a personal level, happen to of the affected by the current banking system in san francisco and around the country, i was hoping this hearing would bring a final and to free, and regulated capitalism, but it did not quite at that goal. there is more work to do. -- unregulated capitalism. there are a lot of steps to get into the process of a municipal bank, legal constraints to move through or imperatives -- impediments presented to us to move through. i do not see that as something happening overnight, but it's something

on publicly-owned banks, there is only one in the country, bank of north dakota, which you mentioned. i will add a footnote in doing this research, we found a number of states that are researching the possibility of creating their own bank and a number of municipalities around the country, and outside the u.s. i know the city of toronto has researched the topic as well. the current [inaudible] a lot of this has already been covered, so i will go quickly. three banks presently used by the city. bank of america being the largest, having most of the funds at present. there are also accounts with wells fargo and union bank. a multitude of banking needs. all the different accounts and different banks are engaged with the city because there are so many names and different types of transactions that take place every day. we had information from the summer, 194 accounts. there are a lot of accounts flowing through the system. in terms of the bank accounts, the average monthly beginning balance is about $255 million each month. as the treasurer pointed out, money coming in and out, lots of tra

get away from a central bank somebody has to print money somebody has to control the money supply somebody has to control the debt issues and if you look at a state like north dakota in america today owns the bank they have a very tight control on the money supply and they didn't have any of these banking probably just going back to hike and basically say you have a rule based system where you're basically saying look there's a series of rules you just follow the rules in which case is a mechanical process you need a mechanic and mechanical process of doing that rather than a bank itself because there's no decision making if you're going to hike solution to some degree and that's possible become especially. now they are going against it is that well what these about. banks and i have so much money flowing through the system you're feeding the entrepreneurial economy you're feeding nasdaq you're feeding the loans you're feeding risk taking so there's think there's a give and take right there however are what we're saying is there a way to get out of this conundrum that the fed finds itself in they've got more debt on their books they can possibly grow their way out

north dakota say the money isn't worth losing their small town feel. or creates another laptop bag or hires another employee, it's not just good for business. it's good for the entire community. at bank of america, we know the impact that local businesses have on communities. that's why we extended $7.8 billion to small businesses across the country so far this year. because the more we help them, the more we help make opportunity possible. i'm a wife, i'm a mom... and chantix worked for me. it's a medication i could take and still smoke, while it built up in my system. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix is proven to help people quit smoking. it reduces the urge to smoke. some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these, stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it. if you develop these, stop taking chantix and see your doctor

host: bank of america in the news this morning saying that debit card fees appear to be making a quick exit. grand fork, north dakota. asking if the current economic zriege used by the president is clinton esk. caller: yes. i believe it is primarily because obama support it is free trade strategy that began under president clinton and continued under bush. and of course the premise of free trade is that we should no longer protect our economy with trade policy, which is absurd and in my opinion on its face treason because just a little bit of context, prior to free trade in the 80's we were concerned about japan taking us over competitively and there was changes in the corporate structures. we had corporate downsizing. unions made big concessions. we had welfare to work. we got people off of welfare. at the end of clinton's administration we had a balanced budget. we didn't have a debt crisis because we were protecting our economy via trade policy which we had done for 20220 years and we were the dominant economy in the world. when free trade was being debated under clinton and under bush nafta, cafta, et cetera, th

the bank of north dakota has 160 employees and its offices a single building in bismarck. [tone] it is a wholesale bank that works with a partnership of over 100 community banks brought north dakota. these community banks do the loan applicant qualification, credit checking and scoping of the deal. because the banks have scanned in the game and because it's the bank of north dakota that ensures the at hearings, the end result is a conservative loan profile. no banks have failed layover 12 years. their return on equity has been 26% and 19%. >> as elected representatives, it is up to you to put into place the structure needed to ensure a democratic economy free from many economic injustices clear from our private banking and financial system. the occupied movement is a witness to these very same unjust and exploitive system. establishing a minute to play on a bank with transparent and solid governance is not an optional step on the path toward a democratic economy. it is necessary in order for the public's credit to be used in the public's interest. we are currently leaving t