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NAFCU is encouraging those in the credit union industry to contact their senators to urge support of regulatory relief legislation that includes several NAFCU-backed provisions, including one to provide relief under the member business lending (MBL) cap and certain Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) disclosure requirements.

The Senate Banking Committee recently marked-up and advanced the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act (S. 2155). It now awaits action by the full Senate.

In an email yesterday, NAFCU Vice President of Legislative Affairs Brad Thaler encouraged association members to use NAFCU's Grassroots Action Center to send a message to their senator, which includes details about the impact the bill would have on credit unions if passed as "regulatory burden is the top challenge facing credit unions today."

"This bipartisan legislation would exempt credit union loans for one-to-four-unit, non-owner-occupied dwellings from the credit union [MBL] cap, freeing up funds for credit unions to help small businesses," the message to senators states.

The NAFCU-backed provisions in the bill include:

• The Credit Union Residential Loan Parity Act, which would allow credit unions to treat loans for one-to-four-unit, non-owner-occupied dwellings that qualify for the MBL exemption as residential loans with lower interest rates – similar to how banks make these loans to small businesses.
• The Home Mortgage Disclosure Adjustment Act, which would exempt depository institutions that have originated fewer than 500 open-end lines of credit and closed-end mortgages in the previous two years from certain HMDA reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Additional NAFCU-supported provisions in Title I of the package would provide credit unions with regulatory relief from various Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and TILA/Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) integrated mortgage disclosure rule provisions.

Two credit union-relevant provisions were also included in the managers amendment to the bill during mark-up: One that would require the NCUA to publish a detailed budget and hold a public hearing to receive comments from the public on its budget annually, and another that would clarify and streamline the process for establishing online banking accounts.

NAFCU Executive Vice President of Government Affairs and General Counsel Carrie Hunt sent a letter to the Senate Banking Committee ahead of the mark-up in support of the measure.

Thaler's email also encouraged members to contact their representatives about a House bill being marked-up today by the House Financial Services Committee, which would stop the NCUA's risk-based capital rule from taking effect on Jan. 1, 2019. (Read more here)