On the first day of his new job as CUNA's president/CEO, Jim Nussle heard about the Structure and Governance Task Force.
"I thought, well, that's kind of interesting. Every association ought to examine itself, see what's going, see what's the right way to do things," Nussle told the audience at the 2015 REACH Conference held earlier this month by the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues in Palm Desert, Calif.
He then paused for a moment and added, "Be careful what you wish for, right?"
Nussle and the CUNA board of directors had no way of knowing that they would ignite one of the biggest industry-wide firestorms after deciding on Sept. 18 to maintain the longstanding dual membership requirement, despite a final recommendation by the task force to offer credit unions membership choice in CUNA and/or a league.
About a month later, Nussle acknowledged the credit union system did not respond well to the CUNA board's decision to maintain the dual membership requirement.
He informed the CUNA board that he directed his management team to draft new bylaws to modernize the trade association's membership structure, according to a summary document of the CUNA board's Oct. 20 meeting obtained by CU Times.
"He believes there's a need to take a step back and re-evaluate the board's decision on membership choice," the summary document read. "To that end, CUNA management will be drafting new CUNA bylaws to modernize its membership structure. As part of the process, he plans to reconsider the CUNA Structure and Governance Task Force recommendations. He plans to bring revised bylaws back to the CUNA board for discussion and consideration at its December board meeting."
This news naturally won support from choice backers, as well as from one CEO whose league favors the dual membership requirement.
Though no one really knows what action the CUNA board will take this month, some credit union leaders agree that the board needs to make a final decision and move forward from one of the of the industry's most emotional controversies.
Read more about CUNA's reconsideration of dual membership and membership choice, plus hear Nussle's insights and an apology from a league CEO, in the Dec. 2 print edition of Credit Union Times.
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Peter Strozniak
Credit Union Times reporter covering credit union operations, fraud, M&As, leagues, business continuity, and breaking news.
