Newsroom

April 18, 2019

NAFCU gains insights on housing finance reform, reg relief

Capitol HillNAFCU Director of Regulatory Affairs Ann Kossachev attended an event Wednesday with Andrew Olmem, special assistant to the president for financial policy, during which he shared updates on a number of issues including the economy, housing finance reform, regulatory relief and consumer privacy.

On housing finance reform, Olmem indicated that the Treasury Department and Department of Housing and Urban Development are currently working on plans as directed by the memo issued by President Donald Trump last month to initiate housing finance reform. Olmem indicated that the administration expects to see reports from both agencies completed within a few weeks. NAFCU has led efforts to ensure credit unions' unfettered access to the secondary mortgage market in any housing finance reform, and has urged the Trump administration and Congress to work together on a comprehensive solution.

Olmem also said that the administration is concerned about regulatory burdens placed on financial institutions in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis; many new regulations have been implemented without having a big impact on the safety and soundness of the financial system. He said the administration is encouraging regulators to implement provisions of S. 2155 in a timely manner; see NAFCU's summary guide on provisions related to credit unions here.

Other issues Olmem discussed included consumer privacy and whether there should be a federal standard that covers all sectors – not just financial institutions – and fintech and innovation.

NAFCU has been engaged with Congress as it considers ways to improve consumer protection and ownership of their information. During a recent Regulatory Committee meeting, NAFCU and member credit unions discussed the California Consumer Privacy Act and other state-level developments related to privacy, as well as the likelihood of federal privacy law. A NAFCU webinar on these issues is available on-demand here.

The association has also called on Congress to better regulate fintech to ensure a fair playing field.

Wednesday's event was hosted by the Exchequer Club.