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NCUA Board Chairman Rick Metsger reiterated his view to Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., who has proposed a bill mandating NCUA budget hearings, that "pursuing budget hearings through agency action and outside a statutory mandate" will allow the agency more flexibility regarding future briefings.

Metsger added that keeping budget briefings within NCUA's purview will also allow stakeholder concerns about the budget to be better addressed as they arise.

Metsger's letter was in response to a June letter from Heller that congratulated the board chairman on his decision to hold a public budget briefing this year and invited his support for S. 924, a bill to require annual hearings and public comment on the agency's draft budgets.

In his letter, Metsger noted that NCUA's budget briefing – to be held in October – "will be more comprehensive than the briefings previously held by the agency," he said. He added that credit union stakeholders will have information about the proposed budget before the briefing.

Metsger announced at NAFCU's Annual Conference in June that the agency will hold a public budget briefing in October and that credit union stakeholders will be able to make their views known.

NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger on Friday sent a letter to the NCUA Board thanking Metsger for announcing that details of its 2017-2018 budget plans would be released for public comment and urged the board to continue to act with transparency and increased efficiency in its budget process. He also asked that credit union stakeholders have at least 60 days to review the budget before the briefing.