ALEXANDRIA, Va.–Some old tensions and even wounds–since healed–on the NCUA board got a brief airing during its most recent meeting here.
During discussion of the now-out-for-comment proposal to delay compliance with NCUA’s risk-based capital rule, Board Member Rick Metsger described himself as “perplexed” over the ongoing delays in implementing the rule, and noted that in 2015 then board member and now chairman J. Mark McWatters had voted against the RBC proposal.
Metsger noted he supported the final rule–which passed 2-1 with then Chairman Debbie Matz also voting in favor–and said, “I am pleased to say we have achieved a nonpartisan consensus…and a goal of protecting the credit union system. Today we are on the same page. We have balanced the need to protect the share insurance fund with our goal of providing regulatory relief to non-complex credit unions.”
Before the vote on the new proposal, McWatters followed up on Metsger’s comment by saying, “I did dissent on the RBC proposal and final rule. That was then. This is now. There is a dynamic on the board now of collegiality and understanding that reasonable minds may differ, but you can still have respect for the other person.”
McWatters’ statement was a veiled reference to the strong tensions between himself (a Republican appointee) and Matz (a Democratic appointee) that often was aired during board meetings, with Matz once stating that McWatters would have a better handle on what was occurring at the agency if he spent more time at its Alexandria, Va., headquarters instead of his Dallas home.
McWatters said the latest proposal is a sign the days of such acrimony are behind the board.
“This to me is a fair-minded deal,” he said. “It’s not something you burn down the place over. For the last 27 months we have not engaged in that. We have constantly found common ground. Sometimes you just have to carve off the sharp edges and make a deal.”