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April 8, 2014 – NAFCU presses for action to mitigate credit unions' growing regulatory burden – including the burden posed by NCUA's risk-based capital proposal – in a statement submitted for the record of a House committee hearing today on how federal financial institution regulators' activities affect the economy.

The statement was sent in advance of a hearing set for 10 a.m. in the House Financial Services Committee, "Who's In Your Wallet: Examining How Washington Red Tape Impairs Economic Freedom." The hearing will include testimony from NCUA, CFPB, the Federal Reserve Board, FDIC and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

NAFCU, in its statement, stresses that credit unions did not cause the economic downturn yet remain in the crosshairs of regulations created under the Dodd-Frank Act to address the activities of those entities that did.

NAFCU details the reforms it proposed in its five-point plan for credit union regulatory relief and its "Dirty Dozen," a list of 12 rules the association says should be eliminated or revised.

NAFCU also details numerous concerns about NCUA's risk-based capital proposal, which revises risk weights and makes other changes. It identifies this proposal as one of several key issues that pose immediate threats to credit unions' ability to serve their members.

NAFCU's analysis shows that under the proposal, credit unions withmore than $50 million in assets would have to hold $6.7 billion more in additional reserves to maintain their current capital cushion. "Simply put, if the NCUA implements this rule as proposed, credit unions will have less capital to loan to creditworthy borrowers, whether for a mortgage, auto, or business loan."

The association's statement urges "rigorous congressional oversight" to ensure the proposed rule doesn't inhibit consumers' access to basic financial services.

"NAFCU believes any implementation period should be no less than three years after passage of any final rule," the statement says.