CURRENT Newsletter | 24 September 2021
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Featured News
- NCUA Board Meeting: No Premium Assessment Needed at Present; Final Rules to Get a Vote Later this Year
- Biden’s IRS Reporting Proposal for FIs Still in Play; Critical CUs Continue Outreach to Lawmakers
- League, CU Representatives Meet with Rep. Luria on IRS Reporting Requirements, Interchange Issues
- CEO FORUM Set for Oct. 20; Registration Open!
- Marketing Workshop: Getting Your Digital Story Telling Right
- League Seeks Your Input on NCUA's Capital Adequacy Rule; Deadline Oct. 6
- NDAA Passes House with Two CU-Supported Measures Included
- Once Confirmed, League Ready to Work with New CFPB Director
- Two Virginians to Serve on CFPB's Credit Union Advisory Council
- League Watching Debt Ceiling Fight with Keen Interest Given Threat to Economy
- League Webinars: During October, Purchase 2, Get 1 Free
- VACUPAC Golf Tournament Tees Off Nov. 10; Golfers, Sponsors Needed!
- International Credit Union Day Coming Oct. 21! Are You Ready to Celebrate!
Advocacy / Governmental Affairs
- Two Members of Congress Extol Work Done by Inclusiv, CDCUs
- Democrats, Republicans Find Common Ground on Data Sharing
Compliance/ Regulatory Affairs
Education & Training
News From Our Chapters
News From Credit Unions
Economy / Marketplace News
- Types of Complaints Filed With CFPB Depend on Type of Communities From Which They Originate, According to New Analysis
- Black Americans Being Priced Out of the Pandemic Housing Boom
- CUs Feel Impact as Consumers Delay Purchases
Featured News
NCUA Board Meeting: No Premium Assessment Needed at Present; Final Rules to Get a Vote Later this Year
In good news for credit unions, the National Credit Union Administration Board today announced that no National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF) premium is needed at present to bolster the fund.
The NCUSIF report was largely encouraging in that the equity position beat the forecast -- albeit by a slim margin (1.23% vs. the projected 1.22%). The better news is that the year-end forecast for the fund's equity rate is 1.28% after the recapitalization "true-up," based on increased insured shares. The capitalization "true-up" is not booked by credit unions as an expense, whereas the premium would be. The rosy forecast for the equity rate makes it increasingly unlikely that a premium assessment will be needed this year.
Vice Chairman Kyle Hauptman and Hood successfully passed an agenda item slating final actions this year on the proposed CUSO rule, field-of-membership rule related to shared facilities, and the final rule regarding mortgage servicing rights.
In other NCUA-related news, reports out of Washington note that NCUA Chairman Todd Harper may get a confirmation hearing next week. The White House announced last month that President Joe Biden would nominate NCUA Chairman Todd Harper to a full term on the NCUA's board.
Biden’s IRS Reporting Proposal for FIs Still in Play; Critical CUs Continue Outreach to Lawmakers
Congress might still include a proposal in budget reconciliation that would require financial institutions to report inflows and outflows for many more accounts to the IRS, despite resistance from the banking industry.
The proposal is "still being considered, and we don't have a timeline beyond that," Senate Finance Committee spokesperson Ashley Schapitl told S&P Global Market Intelligence on Sept. 22. In the House, the Ways and Means Committee's bill excluded the provision.
The proposal would require depository institutions to report nontaxable activity, including the gross amount flowing into and out of accounts holding more than $600, all in an effort to identify unreported taxable income.
We continue to argue that the proposal represents a costly regulatory burden for financial institutions, would violate consumers' privacy, and that the collection of this data would make the IRS an even more tempting target for criminals.
The League continues to encourage credit union advocates to use the Grassroots Action Center to send a message to lawmakers outlining our concerns with the proposal.
League, CU Representatives Meet with Rep. Luria on IRS Reporting Requirements, Interchange Issues
Your League and credit union officials from ABNB Federal Credit Union and Chartway Federal Credit Union met this morning with Rep. Elaine Luria (D-2nd) to discuss a number of key issues for credit unions.
Chief among those issues: a proposal to expand IRS 1099 reporting requirements for financial institutions and recent moves to related to interchange.
CEO FORUM Set for Oct. 20; Registration Open!
This year's CEO Forum (small/mid-size CUs) will be held as a one-day, in-person event Oct. 20 at Credit Union House in Richmond. This is a great opportunity to learn from industry experts, network with your peers, and discuss your top-of-mind issues with new League President/CEO Carrie Hunt and other League staff.
Marketing Workshop: Getting Your Digital Story Telling Right
Digital storytelling helps us connect to people. Through videos, podcasts, commercials and other channels, we’re able to share meaningful stories about our credit union and our members. Join Elizabeth Rider (On the Mark Strategies) for a session at this year’s virtual Marketing Workshop covering:
- Components of an effective digital story
- How to strategically communicate your brand across all digital channels
- The secret to building and effectively executing a content marketing strategy
- The smarter way to budget for digital marketing
This virtual event (Oct. 14 & 15) event is brought to you by the Virginia Credit Union Leagues Marketing and Business Development Committee. We are excited to invite you to join us for a lot of fun, interactive education and networking. "See" you there!
League Seeks Your Input on NCUA's Capital Adequacy Rule; Deadline Oct. 6
Your League is seeking your input on NCUA's proposed rule that would provide a simplified measure of capital adequacy for federally insured credit unions more than $500 million in assets.
We invite you to provide the League with any comments or thoughts you have on this proposed rule. We would need them by Oct. 6 and ask that you email them to cvtipilson@vacul.org.
NDAA Passes House With Two CU-Supported Measures Included
The FY22 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed the House Thursday. In wins for credit unions, the legislation includes the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act and language that would authorize the use of use remote online notarization and create national standards and protections for its use. Also notable: The bill does not contain a bank-requested expansion of an arrangement allowing waivers for certain costs for credit unions on military installations.
The SAFE Banking Act has taken on new importance here in Virginia with the state's recent move to legalize cannabis use for adults. Unfortunately, the Virginia General Assembly has not yet addressed the banking issues surrounding legal cannabis-based businesses.
Related: House Passes NDAA with Several Credit Union Priorities
Once Confirmed, League Ready to Work With New CFPB Director
The Senate is moving closer toward installing Rohit Chopra as permanent director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
“Once confirmed, we look forward to working with Director Chopra on the regulatory issues that matter to our member credit unions,” noted League President/CEO Carrie Hunt. “The agency has a full agenda, including new proposals such as the small-business data collection proposal, possibly revisiting rules to restrict payday lending and rework debt collection, plus other initiatives on fintech, all of which directly affect credit unions or the marketplace in which we operate.”
Two Virginians to Serve on CFPB's Credit Union Advisory Council
CFPB Acting Director Dave Uejio this week announced the appointment of new members to the agency's Credit Union Advisory Council (CUAC), including Virginians Jose Iregui (Langley Federal Credit Union) and Deb Wreden (Virginia Credit Union) Iregui will serve as chair of the CUAC.
League Watching Debt Ceiling Fight with Keen Interest Given Threat to Economy
Your League is keenly interested in the ongoing federal debt limit fight and what will occur in the U.S. Senate in the coming days. The potential impact on the economy is deeply concerning, notes League President/CEO Carrie Hunt.
League Webinars: During October, Purchase 2, Get 1 Free
Purchase any 2 webinars through our training partner between Oct. 1 and Oct. 31 and get 1 free! Some exclusions apply, but see the list of available webinars here!
VACUPAC Golf Tournament Tees Off Nov. 10; Golfers, Sponsors Needed!
Calling all golfers: the 32nd Annual VACUPAC Golf Classic tees off Nov. 10 at Hell's Point Golf Club. Your participation aids our advocacy efforts by supporting the Virginia Credit Union Political Action Committee, the state-level, non-profit, non-partisan political action committee of the Virginia Credit Union League and its affiliated credit unions.
We need sponsors, as well! Learn more about golf and sponsorship opportunities here.
International Credit Union Day Coming Oct. 21! Are You Ready to Celebrate!
Each year we come together to celebrate International Credit Union Day (ICU Day)® and raise awareness about what it means for members around the world to have a credit union as their financial partner.
This year's ICU Day theme, “Building financial health for a brighter tomorrow,” reflects the way credit unions contribute to a brighter future by working to improve members' financial well-being. Mark your calendar for Oct. 21, 2021.
Advocacy / Governmental Affairs
Two Members of Congress Extol Work Done by Inclusiv, CDCUs
Two members of Congress had supportive words for the work done by Inclusiv and its member credit unions.
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) both offered remarks to Inclusiv’s virtual annual conference this week. As Inclusiv noted, Waters and Warner have led efforts to secure a record $12 billion in funding to support community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and minority depository institutions (MDIs), which was included in the December 2020 COVID-19 relief bill.
Democrats, Republicans Find Common Ground on Data Sharing
Several high-ranking lawmakers who rarely agree on anything found common ground at a hearing Tuesday in support of consumers’ right to control their own financial data.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle questioned the widespread practice of screen scraping at a House Financial Services Committee hearing that delved into issues that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will address in a rulemaking expected by April 2022.
Several lawmakers cited data that shows consumers have little, if any, understanding of the way many fintechs and data aggregators access customer account data by scraping the information with a consumer’s login credentials.
“People aren’t aware that [screen scraping] is going on. They should be told. There should be options presented to them,” said Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., at a hearing of the committee's Task Force on Financial Technology. “The first way to protect people's privacy and information is to be honest with them upfront and say this is what's happening with your information and how we're accessing it.”
Enormous amounts of data about an individual’s personal and financial information are now collected, stored and often sold to third parties by financial services companies. The data is used to sell products and services that allow consumers to manage their personal finances and perform other tasks such as setting goals for how to save money.
The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act allows consumers to opt-out of having their data shared. But several experts and lawmakers said consumers rarely read the small typeface buried in agreements stating that they can revoke their consent.
Waters said consumers should have the ability to opt into data-sharing.
Other lawmakers expressed concern that the industry is light years ahead of regulatory policy.
"We all agree on the importance of protecting consumers' control over their own financial data," said Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass. "But there's a question whether both regulators and policymakers alike are moving fast enough to address the uncertainties in this area. I'm not convinced that we are."
The CFPB currently is in the thick of writing a data-sharing rule, required by the Dodd-Frank Act, that aims to clarify standards for how fintechs access bank account data. Banks have long objected to screen scraping even as banks and aggregators have been moving toward partnerships to send data to fintechs using application programming interfaces.
Compliance/ Regulatory Affairs
FinCEN SAR Guidance Regarding Child Exploitation
FinCEN has issued Notice FIN-2021-NTC3 to call attention to an increase in online child sexual exploitation (OCSE). The Notice provides financial institutions with specific suspicious activity report (SAR) filing instructions and highlights some financial trends related to OCSE. The Notice requests the use of specific terms and definitions when describing suspicious activity involving OCSE.
OFAC Releases Advisory on Ransomware Payments
OFAC released an Updated Advisory on Potential Sanctions Risks for Facilitating Ransomware Payments. The Advisory emphasizes that the U.S. government continues to strongly discourage the payment of cyber ransom or extortion demands and recognizes the importance of cyber hygiene in preventing or mitigating such attacks.
Education & Training
CUNA Mutual Group Hosting Mortgage Lending Webinars
CUNA Mutual Group invites you to participate in its series of CU-exclusive webinars designed to keep you fully informed of current mortgage lending practices. These webinars will better prepare you to help your members achieve their dreams of homeownership.
News From Our Chapters
League President/CEO Carrie Hunt to Speak at Tidewater Chapter's Oct. 14 Meeting
League President/CEO Carrie Hunt will be the featured speaker at the Tidewater Chapter's Oct. 14 meeting. Register by Oct. 8.
News From Credit Unions
NWFCU Foundation School Supply Drive Provides Nearly 60,000 Supplies to Local Schools
NWFCU Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Northwest Federal Credit Union, recently concluded its Back to School Supply Drive benefitting the Fairfax County IGNITE program as well as local schools and organizations in Loudoun County.
Economy / Marketplace News
Types of Complaints Filed With CFPB Depend on Type of Communities From Which They Originate, According to New Analysis
The types of complaints received by the CFPB depend on the types of communities from which they are filed, according to a new analysis by the Bureau.
According to the CFPB’s first in-depth report analyzing complaint submission patterns by U.S. Census tract, complaints from wealthier communities and communities with higher percentages of white, non-Hispanic residents were more frequently about loan origination and performing servicing, while the complaints from communities of color and lower-income communities were more frequently about credit reporting, identity theft, and delinquent servicing.
Black Americans Being Priced Out of the Pandemic Housing Boom
Many Black Americans are being disproportionately priced out of the pandemic-fueled housing boom.
Before the pandemic, the Black homeownership rate in America was slowly but steadily rising — a small but significant economic bright spot against a backdrop of racial inequality. Then the pandemic slammed the brakes on that upward trend, even as homeownership among White Americans continued to climb.
CUs Feel Impact as Consumers Delay Purchases
Consumers have the means and the desire, but shortages of cars and homes are leading more of them to delay purchases, according to reports Wednesday.
As go sales, lending closely follows. Car loans and first mortgages accounted for 77% of loans on the books at credit unions on July 31, according to CUNA. While first mortgages and used car balances have grown in the past year, new car balances were down.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that sales of new homes fell 2% from July to August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 5.88 million homes.
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