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The NAFCU Share Insurance, Liquidity and Development Fund Oversight Committee, made up of association member representatives, on Monday urged the NCUA Board to explore options that would negate the need for a share insurance premium to be charged in 2017.

Last month, the NCUA Board projected no assessment range for the Temporary Corporate Credit Union Stabilization Fund but estimated a potential National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund premium of 3 to 6 basis points of insured shares.

"NAFCU is hopeful that a premium will not be necessary in 2017, and encourages the agency to continue to publically explore all available avenues to negate the need for a premium," the NAFCU committee wrote in a letter Monday to NCUA Board Chairman Rick Metsger and Board Member J. Mark McWatters. "If NCUA does ultimately decide to move forward with a premium charge, NAFCU urges the agency to release additional information and advance guidance to provide our members with clarity for planning purposes."

The committee also thanked the board for its transparency and public deliberation regarding the possibility of the premium. However, the committee urged the NCUA to focus on maximizing investment returns, minimizing insurance losses and controlling operating expenses in order to prudently manage the NCUSIF.

Many credit unions would feel a bottom-line impact from the premium charge: NCUA's baseline projections show 110 credit unions would have negative net income after a 3 bps charge; a 6 bps charge would push 219 credit unions into negative net income.

The last premium charge for the share insurance fund was in 2010 and amounted to 12.42 basis points.

By statute, the agency is required to charge a premium if the NCUSIF's equity ratio falls below 1.2 percent. As of Sept. 30, the ratio stood at 1.27 percent.