NCUA Board Votes on Key Issues on Hold - For Now

ALEXANDRIA, Va – With the postponement of the Sept. 18 NCUA Board meeting until Sept. 24, the credit union community was left hanging on several key issues to be debated at the meeting. The meeting agenda included a final version of the member business lending rule, which the credit union trades looked upon very favorably, but the Treasury Department and banks had raised some concerns. Some in the credit union community were concerned that NCUA might back down on some of the provisions like the personal guarantee and loan participations. The board had proposed to lower the requirements for construction and development loan equity from 35% to 25%; eliminate personal guarantees by principals; not require credit unions to count toward their business loan cap loan participations purchased without recourse; clarify that loans to other credit unions and credit union service organizations are not MBLs; exclude loans for commercial-use vehicles, including cars, vans, pick-ups or sport utility vehicles, from the loan-to-value requirements; and allow CUSOs to originate MBLs, among other things. The board was also expected to consider a community charter conversion for Bethpage FCU, which has been in the news because of its ambitious application to serve nearly 3 million residents on Long Island. Though modifications are expected, the approved area will remain quite sizeable. The agenda listed a community charter application for ABNB FCU in Virginia Beach too. NCUA Chairman Dennis Dollar had also placed a proposed rule on the agenda to amend disclosures involved in credit union conversions to thrifts. He has expressed concern over members understanding that once a credit union converts to a mutual, it can convert to stock form within two years. Finally, proposed amendments regarding surety and guaranty and state credit union’s maximum borrowing authority were on the agenda. The first half of the item would allow FCUs, and state chartered credit unions where permitted, to act as a surety or guarantor for a member if a credit union cannot conduct a transaction itself. The second half is a state parity issue involving a waiver of the 50% of capital borrowing cap for federally insured state chartered credit unions where states permit a higher level. Prior to the cancellation of the meeting, when Dollar was still exhibiting determination to hold the meeting as planned, he said in a statement, “We have a lengthy agenda with substantive issues scheduled to come before the Board, and the Board feels it is always important to have our meetings on the dates and times that were announced to the public unless there are circumstances outside of our control which intervene.” [email protected]