Executive Letter: Record-Breaking Capitol Day Demonstrates Power of Unified Industry Voice
By Rose Oswald Poels
I want to extend my sincere thanks to all of the members who helped make our 2025 Capitol Day a resounding success. With over 320 bankers from more than 70 banks across Wisconsin in attendance, this year marked record-breaking participation and sent a powerful message to lawmakers at the State Capitol.
Bankers met with 32 of 33 State Senators and 80 of 99 State Representatives to discuss the critical role banks play in growing local economies and supporting the needs of individuals, families, and businesses. These direct conversations — on topics like state privacy regulations, credit card interchange fees, tax parity, cryptocurrency, and protecting seniors from financial fraud — emphasized how essential strong partnerships are between lawmakers and our industry. The presence of such a large, unified group made a lasting impression on our state’s elected officials.
We heard from key state leaders including Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, and Assembly Assistant Minority Leader Kalan Haywood who participated in a panel moderated by WisPolitics.com President Jeff Mayers. During lunch, remarks were delivered by DFI Secretary-designee Wendy K. Baumann. Their participation reaffirmed the importance of Capitol Day in shaping policies that enable banks to better serve Wisconsin communities.
As we continue our advocacy work in 2025, we are actively working toward our annual fundraising goal of $300,000 through contributions to Wisbankpac and the Alliance for Bankers Conduit. These funds are essential to supporting critical efforts like Capitol Day — which remains free for WBA members — and ensuring the voice of Wisconsin’s banking industry remains strong and effective in the legislative process. If you or others at your bank have not yet participated, I encourage you to consider a personal contribution and help us reach this important goal. If you would like to help spread the word about WBA’s fundraising goal, a sample fundraising letter is in the digital WBA Advocacy Toolkit.
Once again, thank you for your leadership and your commitment to advocacy. Together, we are making a difference in advancing the banking industry and supporting communities across the state.
If you would like to access any of the “leave behind materials” shared at Capitol Day, you can download them from the links below:
• WBA Issue Papers Summary
• Issue Summary
• Impact Brochure
In closing, I’d like to give kudos to WBA’s Government Relations team, Lorenzo Cruz and Tyler Foti, for their hard work in making Capitol Day the success that it was.
