WASHINGTON–With both the House and the Senate in recess likely through April 20, in part due to the coronavirus pandemic, CUNA’s chief advocacy officer, Ryan Donovan, said he expects when Congress returns the agenda will be dominated by a fourth piece of recovery and stimulus legislation.
As CUToday.info reported here, there is already discussion in Washington around whether an even larger stimulus will be needed to head off what some have called the potential for a “21st Century Depression.”
In terms of the just-passed $2-trillion CARES Act, credit unions continue to parse through it’s more than 800 pages for its implications, but Donovan said CUNA was particularly happy to see credit unions eligible to participate in the Paycheck Protection Program, to see the changes in the Transaction Account Guarantee program, and for the provisions around troubled debt restructurings, including assurances credit unions will be given leeway to modify existing loans as the pandemic continues to affect so many Americans.
Engaging Regulators
“We continue to engage regulators, NCUA, CFPB and others to encourage them to reduce regulatory burden so they can more efficiently serve their members,” said Donovan, noting CUNA is pushing a delay until 2024 in the effective date for implementing CECL, for an expedited appraisal rule, and for NCUA to suspend for 120 days on-site examinations and data collection.
As CUToday.info has also reported, CUNA continues to press NCUA to change the definition of a low-income credit union to include APO/FPO addresses so as to allow additional CUs to take advantage of that designation, and for the agency to also amend its 30-day membership requirement rule for members seeking a payday assistance loan (PAL).