“Specifically, we hope that the NCUA will heed and be responsive to credit unions' comments regarding the proposed risk-based capital rule,” Berger said. “Contrary to the NCUA's stated aim, the risk-based capital rule will be one-size-fits-all and create significant burdens because it will force all credit unions to adjust their capital, not just the 3% of credit unions the NCUA currently estimates would be downgraded under the proposed rule.”

Eric Richard, executive vice president and general counsel at CUNA, and Mary Dunn, senior vice president and deputy general counsel, said the NCUA is moving in a pro-regulatory direction.

“Counting up the number of rules and deciding how many were regulatory and how many were de-regulatory is not a viable approach,” Richard told CU Times.

“The real issue is not the number, it's the impact and believe me, credit unions have felt the impact of regulations like the liquidity risk-management rule,” Dunn said.

Following the hearing, CUNA CEO Bill Cheney told CU Times it was terrific to see members of Congress showing interest in issues like risk-based capital and business lending.

“We have urged Congress to take a particular interest in the proposed risk-based capital rule, and clearly the issue has piqued interest. The questions about the risk-based capital proposal reflect a level of concern in Congress that the proposal is in need of significant improvements,” Cheney said. “We appreciate that the NCUA has indicated it will make changes and we will continue to encourage them to do so.”

The hearing, titled “Who's In Your Wallet: Examining How Washington Red Tape Impairs Economic Freedom,” also saw testimony from Meredith Fuchs, general counsel at the CFPB; Richard Osterman, acting general counsel at the FDIC; Scott Alvarez, general counsel at the Federal Reserve; and Amy Friend, chief counsel at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.