CUNA has written NCUA's Office of Minority and Women Inclusion to urge the agency implement one of the requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act with as little additional reporting requirements as possible.

Section 342(b)(2)(c) of the Dodd-Frank Act requires Federal financial regulators, including the NCUA, to set up offices of minority and women inclusion and staff the offices with directors. The offices are responsible first for monitoring the diversity and inclusion practices of the agencies themselves as well as “assessing the diversity policies and practices of entities regulated by the agency.”

It's this last requirement that led CUNA, with credit union executives, to meet with the office's director Tawana James on February 29 and to have written her a letter on March 26 expressing concern about a possible requirement to assess the diversity practices of credit union contractors and suppliers.

“Nevertheless, there is not an express requirement in the language of Section 342(b)(2)(c) requiring OMWI to develop any standards relating to assessing diversity practices or policies specifically relating to credit unions' contractor and supplier relationships< the association wrote. “Since it is not required under the statute, and because it would be unduly difficult – and perhaps impossible – for our members to collect such information, CUNA recommends that OMWI exclude data relating to contractor and supplier relationships from any assessments it will implement under Section 342.”