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April 19, 2000 Sorry, this should have been sent out last week, but due to the NAELB traffic, it was delayed. It is still quite newsworthy and worth reading. KEN GREENE'S LEASE AND LAW LETTER April
2000 CURRENT
DEVELOPMENTS IN LAW AND LEGISLATION Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott sought to call up S.625 for the purpose of separating the minimum wage and tax provisions from the bill, allowing a clean bill to go to conference with the House on H.R. 833. The move required unanimous consent, as does most Senate action, but Senate Democrats objected. While most Senate Democrats support the bankruptcy bill (it passed 84-13 in early February), they object to the Senate's 3-year phase-in of the wage increase and the business tax breaks contained in the package to soften the blow for businesses affected by the hike. (The White House has threatened a veto over the package, though they've said they'd sign S. 625 otherwise). The tax provisions, if not separated, would be subject to a point of order in the House, as all tax legislation must originate in the House under the Constitution. The bottom line is that the legislation, which once appeared more likely than not to be on the President's desk by the time of Washington's cherry blossom season, now is in serious jeopardy again. Stay tuned for the next twist... BUSINESS NEWS BankVest entered into a consensual liquidating Chapter 11 in late January. All furniture and equipment will be auctioned off on March 14th. The company has only 3 remaining employees. Finova now services the conduit leases. The estate is marketing its performing lease portfolio. Non-performing assets will be liquidated at a later date. Interested parties can contact BankVest at 508-786-7338. eLease, Inc. an idealab! company, launched what they claim to be the financial service industry's first, fully automated, neutral online marketplace for capital equipment leasing. eLease offers business owners, purchasing managers and financial planners the ability to source, compare and select leases from a variety of banks and leasing companies in a true e-commerce environment. Textron Financial Corporation, announced the formation of AssetControl.com, an Internet business-to-business (B2B) joint venture to create the industry's most comprehensive B2B marketplace specializing in the online resale of surplus industrial equipment, excess inventory and commercial real estate. Additional partners include Entrade Inc.ATM Service, Ltd., a subsidiary of WorldWide Web NetworX Corporation and Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. Advanta Corporation announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Advanta Bank Corp., has priced a $386 million equipment lease securitization. The securities are backed primarily by small-ticket equipment lease receivables contracts including copiers, microcomputers, printers and communication equipment originated through Advanta Bank Corp. While it may be old news to some, First Sierra has ceased it's brokerage business and is concentrating on internet leasing plus direct marketing. Look for Bob Rodi of American Lease Exchange to release his "LeaseNOW" software the week of April 17. PERSONNEL,
INDUSTRY AND ASSOCIATION NEWS The agenda is close to final. By now, you should have received the beautiful brochure created by the wonderful UAEL staff (never mind the picture of me. . . I was supposed to look like an alien, but instead came out looking like a ?????). If you have not received the brochure, please contact the UAEL offices at 510 444 9235. HOpe to see you there. ELA LEGAL FORUM: The program looks rich and indispensable, covering new Commercial Code developments, among other things. This is always a great program. Don't miss it. That's it for now. Any questions, please feel free to send a reply e-mail, or call us at (415) 925 0700. And, again, my thanks to my good friend Kit Menkin for further distributing this newsletter. Ken Greene Kenneth C. Greene & Associates The foregoing is meant to provide general information to the leasing industry. It is not meant as an endorsement or legal opinion and readers should consult counsel and/or verify the accuracy of any contents upon which they intend to rely. Any recipients who wish to be removed from this newsletter mailing list should e-mail kgreene100@aol.com by reply e-mail, and will be promptly removed. Please also feel free to send me news and/or modifications to items discussed herein. Thank you. www.leasingnews.org
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