By Jason Stverak
On July 23, the Senate Banking Committee will meet in executive session to consider a nomination with consequences for millions of Americans who rely on credit unions to save, borrow, buy homes, start businesses and withstand financial emergencies. The committee should vote to report John Crews’s nomination to the NCUA board favorably, and the Senate should confirm him without unnecessary delay.
For the Defense Credit Union Council, this is not an abstract personnel decision. DCUC represents more than 200 credit unions serving over 40 million members. These institutions serve active duty servicemembers, members of the National Guard and Reserve, veterans, military families and their communities. They help members navigate relocations, deployments, overseas assignments and other circumstances that demand reliable financial services.
The NCUA’s decisions matter at the kitchen table, on military installations and across the economy. The agency must protect the safety and soundness of the credit union system and the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund. It must also recognize that credit unions are member-owned cooperatives—not shareholder-driven banks—and that institutions with different sizes and risk profiles should not be regulated as though they were identical.
Crews is well prepared to strike that balance.
His approximately 15 years of government service have focused almost exclusively on financial services policy. He has spent nearly a decade working either for the Senate Banking Committee or for its members, giving him an understanding of financial regulation and congressional intent. His work has included bipartisan legislation such as the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, the Otto Warmbier BRINK Act and the CARES Act. That background is valuable at an independent regulator whose decisions require competence, judgment and an ability to work across institutional and political lines.
At his nomination hearing, Crews identified safety, soundness and resilience as his primary responsibilities. He also made the case for efficient, effective and risk-based supervision. That is the right philosophy. Strong oversight does not require indiscriminate oversight. A small, locally focused credit union should not bear the same compliance architecture as a larger institution unless the underlying risk warrants it. Tailored supervision allows the NCUA to focus its resources on the greatest risks while reducing unnecessary costs that affect members.
Clear Rules Needed
Crews also understands that the future cannot be supervised using only the tools and assumptions of the past. Artificial intelligence, digital assets, cybersecurity threats and third-party technology providers are changing financial services. Credit unions need clear rules that permit responsible innovation while maintaining consumer protection and operational resilience. Crews has said the NCUA should prepare for technological innovation and recognize its potential to improve member experiences and reach underserved communities. That is a constructive approach: neither reflexive resistance nor uncritical enthusiasm, but responsible modernization.
His support for de novo credit unions is equally important. Forming a new credit union has become extraordinarily difficult, yet new charters can bring cooperative financial services to communities and groups that remain overlooked. A healthy system should not merely preserve established institutions; it should also create a viable path for responsible new entrants.
Just as important as Crews’s policy knowledge is how he approaches public service. Effective regulators must listen before they act. They must engage with agency professionals, regulated institutions, consumer advocates, lawmakers and other stakeholders, including those with whom they disagree. Crews has developed a reputation for accessibility, thoughtful engagement and an open door. DCUC does not expect to agree with every decision he may make. Our support is not a request for predetermined outcomes. It reflects our confidence that disagreements will be heard, statutory limits taken seriously and decisions considered on their merits.
Questions about agency independence and accountability are legitimate. Every NCUA Board member must follow the Federal Credit Union Act, protect the Share Insurance Fund and exercise independent judgment. Confirmation should never amount to a blank check. But independence is demonstrated through conduct: fidelity to law, transparent reasoning, willingness to consider competing evidence and the discipline to distinguish prudent supervision from regulatory overreach. Crews’s experience and testimony provide a strong basis to believe he will meet that standard.
For defense credit unions, capable NCUA leadership also supports military financial readiness. Financial stress can undermine the well-being and preparedness of servicemembers and their families. Credit unions serving these communities help members manage deployments, establish credit, finance transportation, purchase homes, recover from emergencies and build long-term security. A regulator that understands their operational realities helps preserve access to those services. In that sense, sound credit union policy contributes not only to household stability but also to national readiness.
Senators may differ over particular policies, but this nomination should be evaluated on qualifications, temperament and commitment to the agency’s mission. John Crews has substantial financial-policy experience, a record of bipartisan work and a clearly articulated commitment to safety and soundness, tailored regulation, innovation and stakeholder engagement.
The Senate Banking Committee should vote affirmatively to advance his nomination. The Senate should then confirm him so the NCUA can benefit from steady, informed and accountable leadership at a consequential moment for America’s credit unions and the members they serve.
Jason Stverak is Chief Advocacy Officer at the Defense Credit Union Council.