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Well-run, healthy credit unions with assets of less than $1 billion could be moved to an extended examination cycle beginning next year, pending board approval, NCUA said Thursday. NAFCU will meanwhile continue to press for such relief for all well-run credit unions.

"NAFCU believes it's time for NCUA to fully acknowledge the substantial exam burden experienced by all well-run, healthy credit unions," said NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger. "That is why we have long advocated for all healthy credit unions, not just credit unions less than $1 billion in assets, to be returned to an extended exam cycle.

"The exam flexibility report contains some positive improvements, which we appreciate and should be swiftly adopted by the agency, but NCUA can do more to provide relief and still protect the share insurance fund," Berger added. "We will continue to work with NCUA to ensure credit unions get the best changes possible on this front."

The NCUA Board is scheduled to consider the Exam Flexibility Initiative work group's recommendations, an extended exam cycle being one of them, as part of the agency's 2017–2018 budget, scheduled to come before the board at its Nov. 17 open meeting.

The extended exam cycle is one of 10 recommendations in a report now available online.

With board approval, come Jan. 1, the following recommendations would become effective:

• an extended exam cycle for well-run, healthy federal credit unions;
• enhanced examinations of small federal credit unions;
• enhanced coordination of exams for federally-insured, state-chartered credit unions; and
• the establishment of an NCUA and state supervisor working group.

NCUA on Thursday also said it could make other changes as of July 1, 2017, including improvements in examination planning and the issuance of a post-exam survey, if the board approves those recommendations.