The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is seeking input from credit union stakeholders on a regulatory reform package developed by an internal agency task force.
The task force has recommended changes that would be adopted in the coming four years to clarify, improve, revise, or eliminate regulations.
“The need for a forward-looking regulatory structure that offers meaningful relief without undermining safety and soundness is quite clear,” NCUA Board Chairman J. Mark McWatters said. “These recommendations provide a roadmap to achieve that goal.”
The notice has been published in the Federal Register and the 90-day comment period is currently open.
“This undertaking represents a more significant and comprehensive regulatory relief effort than the agency has pursued in the past. We initiated this effort in the spirit of the administration’s executive order requiring regulatory review, even though the NCUA is not covered by the order,” McWatters said.
NCUA Board Member Rick Metsger said the agency has made great strides offering regulatory relief since the financial crisis of 2008 And this new effort looks to build on that.
“A great deal of work went into developing these recommendations,” Metsger said. “The task force scoured all the agency’s regulations, looking for ways to make improvements. I hope credit union stakeholders will take time to review this plan carefully and offer comments.”
The agency’s regulatory reform task force was created earlier this year after the NCUA voluntarily chose to comply with an executive order which requires federal agencies to conduct regulatory reviews. Since 1987, the agency has conducted a three-year rolling review of all its rules.
NCUA also has participated in the Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act regulatory review process. If the internal task force’s recommendations are adopted by the Board, they would, in effect, supersede those previous efforts.
The task force’s recommendations assess regulatory changes in terms of the time and resources necessary to implement them and the potential benefit to credit unions. All regulatory changes will require an affirmative vote by the NCUA’s Board.
The agency already has taken steps towards reform in several areas covered in the proposal, including field-of-membership, alternative capital, asset securitization, and appeals to the NCUA’s supervisory review committee.