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CURRENT Newsletter | 25 February 2021

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Advocacy / Governmental Affairs

Compliance / Regulatory Affairs

Financial Services / Economy

Risk Management

Headlines

Virtual ‘Hike The Hill’ Meetings Set With 9 Lawmakers Next Week; Register Now

Join us March 2-4 for your League's virtual Hike The Hill event for an opportunity to meet with Virginia's Congressional delegation and advocate for our federal legislative agenda.

We now have nine meetings scheduled, with Sen. Tim Kaine and Rep. Morgan Griffith being the most recent additions:

After you register for an event, your confirmation email will contain a direct link to the meeting's web location/URL.

We also hold a pre-event briefing on March 1! Learn more about this event here.

Learn more

CULAC Grand Sweepstakes Going Virtual; Launches March 1

With CUNA GAC comes the annual CULAC Grand Sweepstakes, CULAC’s largest fundraising event! The big change this year: the CULAC Grand Sweepstakes is going virtual!

The Sweepstakes offers contributors a unique opportunity to win dozens of prizes donated from our League partners and the grand prize - a Peloton Bike+ Basics and a one-year membership subscription.

The sweepstakes opens March 1! We need your help to meet last year’s record-setting total of $300,000. And remember, for each $10 contribution you make, you will receive one (1) entry into the CULAC Sweepstakes.

Learn more

League Hosting Compliance, Regulatory Update Webinar March 17

Join us March 17 for a free compliance/regulatory update with attorney Jay Spruill. The hour-long webinar (10 a.m. start time) will cover frequently asked questions on the League compliance hotline, key federal regulatory issues, and any recently enacted state laws that might affect your operations.

Also, feel free to send your questions prior to the webinar to your League’s Mary Amyx at mamyx@vacul.org. She’ll gladly forward them to Jay to ensure they are covered during the webinar.

Learn more and register here.

YPN Hosting March 18 Lunch & Learn

The Young Professionals Network is hosting a virtual Lunch & Learn Meeting March 18 (1 p.m.-2 p.m.). Mark Odom and Bianca Sutterluety (ABNB Federal Credit Union) will be our hosts and facilitate a discussion on “Tips for Growing Your Credit Union Career.”

Register here

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Beyond the Buzz

Join Us March 18 for Webinar with NCUA Diversity Communications Specialist Marty Raines

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, or DEI, have been popping up in conversations, in the media, and on meeting agendas with increasing frequency lately. But beyond buzz words and catchphrases, what do they really mean?

In this March 18 webinar presentation (10 a.m.-11 a.m.), NCUA's Diversity Communications Specialist Marty Raines will define diversity, equity, and inclusion, and more importantly, share what they mean for our credit unions. Join us to learn how DEI contributes to talent, growth, and innovation, and to find out what the NCUA is doing to help you enhance your DEI efforts.

Register

Virtual Front-line, Teller Training Coming March 10; Register Now!

Your League is offering a dynamic, after-hours virtual training for your front-line employees on March 10. This interactive, virtual program focuses on six modules that remind the teller how important their job is, how significant their actions are, and tips on improving how they interact with members. This teller-training program is information-packed and attention-grabbing! Employees will leave this workshop with a renewed commitment to excel on the job.

DATE: March 10.
TIME: 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.
EDUCATIONAL INVESTMENT: $39 for CUs less than $10 million in assets; $69 for CUs $10 million-$100 million; $99 for CUs with more than $100 million in assets.

Learn more

Registration Opens for Mid-Level Management Leadership Series

Focusing on mid-level managers is important to your credit union’s success. Your credit union's mid-level managers, branch managers, and department leads are often the primary point-of-contact for employees. Their management style, good or bad, has a tremendous impact on employee performance and workplace well-being. It is extremely important for credit unions to invest in the professional development and personal growth of their mid-level leaders.

The Mid-Level Management Leadership Series is a four-part virtual learning experience (March 10 & 11, April 14 & 28) specifically designed to provide mid-level leaders with the skills and tools they need to lead effectively, remove barriers and optimize performance.

Educational Investment: $425 per person. This series is hosted by our TRGroup partner, the Kentucky Credit Union League.

Learn more

TruEnergy FCU’s Lynette Smith to Be Inducted Into AACUC’s Hall of Fame

The African-American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC) plans to induct five credit union leaders into its Hall of Fame at the Virtual Induction on March 1. The 2021 honorees include Lynette W. Smith, of Virginia-based TruEnergy Federal Credit Union.

Smith has been in the credit union industry for 31 years and has served for the past 12 years as the president/CEO of TruEnergy FCU (formally Washington Gas Light FCU). She also serves on the board of the AACUC and on the board of the Metropolitan Area Credit Union Management Association. Smith received NAFCU’s CEO of the Year Award for credit unions under $150 million in assets and last year was honored in the Virginia General Assembly.

Learn more

Advocacy / Governmental Affairs

Future EIPs Should be Protected from Garnishment

The next round of Economic Impact Payments should be protected from assignment and garnishment, CUNA and other organizations wrote this week to Congressional leaders. Legislation, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 is currently being considered by Congress.

“We believe it is imperative that Congress ensure that these next stimulus payments are treated as “benefits” subject to the federal exemption from garnishment. Otherwise, the families that most need this money—those struggling with debt and whose entire bank accounts may be frozen by garnishment orders—will not be able to access their funds. This group includes very low-income families with children, people who have been disconnected from work opportunities for a long period, and many low-income adults now raising children in their homes.”

The letter notes that the initial round of EIPs from the CARES Act were not exempt from court-ordered garnishments, which imposed significant burdens on some families, especially those in communities of color.

The organizations note that adding such protections into the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 would ensure families receive the benefits as intended.

Learn more

Compliance / Regulatory Affairs

CFPB Issues Updated ATR/QM Guidance

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Tuesday issued updated Ability-to-Repay/Qualified Mortgage (ATR/QM) guidance. The CFPB is reconsidering whether to initiate a rulemaking to revisit the Seasoned QM rule, and it expects to issue a proposal shortly to delay the July 1 mandatory compliance date of the General QM final rule.

The Seasoned QM rule creates a new category of QMs, for first-lien, fixed-rate covered transactions that meet certain performance requirements over a 36-month seasoning period.

The General QM final rule replaces the current requirement for General QM loans that the consumer’s debt-to-income ratio (DTI) not exceed 43% with a limit based on the loan’s pricing.

CUNA generally supports both rules and wrote to CFPB Acting Director Dave Uejio shortly after his appointment calling for the QM rules to be implemented without delay.

Learn more

PCA, MBL, FOM Flexibility Would Help CUs Continue Service

Additional flexibility granted by Congress would ensure credit unions can continue to serve pandemic-affected members, CUNA wrote to the Senate Banking Committee Wednesday. The committee will conduct a hearing Thursday on rebuilding Main Street in the wake of the pandemic.

“We appreciate the swift response that Congress has undertaken to address the economic consequences of the pandemic. More needs to be done, and still more will need to be accomplished in the months and years ahead,” the letter reads. “As financial first responders, America’s credit unions stand willing and able to help consumers and small businesses during the crisis and into recovery.”

CUNA recommends Congress:

  • Provide NCUA temporary flexibility to offer forbearance from Prompt Corrective Action requirements;
  • Exempt member business loans during, and for one year after, the national emergency; and
  • Expand credit union field of membership to ensure that federal law permits all federal credit unions to serve underserved areas.

Learn more

Financial Services / Economy

US Economy was Stronger Than We Thought Last Quarter; But It Still Wasn't Strong Enough

The US economy fared ever so slightly better in the fourth quarter of 2020 than initially thought. The nation's gross domestic product grew at an annualized and seasonally adjusted rate of 4.1%, the Commerce Department reported in its second reading of the data on Thursday.

That's up from the annualized and seasonally adjusted 4% growth rate reported in late January, but slightly less than the 4.2% economists had predicted.

The small improvement reflects higher residential and inventory investments and increased state and local government spending. These upticks were partially offset by consumer expenditures being revised lower.

In a normal year, an annualized GDP growth rate of 4.1% would be reason to pop some champagne. But in the abnormal world of the pandemic, it leaves the United States way too far in the hole.

Learn more

Credit Unions Kept Pace With Mortgages in 2020

Credit unions kept up with other lenders in mortgages last year, while falling behind in automotive loans.

Data released Tuesday by the FDIC showed the economic effects of the pandemic were similar for banks and credit unions: Big increases in savings, small growth for loans and surprising resilience in returns on average assets.

Credit unions held $384.5 billion in auto loans as of Dec. 31, just 0.9% more than a year earlier, according to the Credit Union Trends Report released Tuesday by CUNA Mutual Group of Madison, Wis.

Meanwhile, auto loans at banks grew 1.7% to $491.7 billion, and auto loans held by captives and others grew 9.1% to $351.7 billion.

Until mid-2019, credit union auto loans were growing much faster than banks. Since then, growth rates at banks have been at least twice that of credit unions.

As a result, credit union market share has shrunk. They ended 2020 with 31.3% of automotive loans, down from 32.1% a year earlier and a post-Great Recession peak of 32.6% in 2018.

New car loans fell 3.8% to $144 billion in 2020 after falling 0.1% in 2019. Used car loans grew 4% to $240.6 billion last year, the same pace as 2019.

Learn more
Related: Housing market concerns begin to emerge
Related: Mortgage rates are climbing. Don't panic

Risk Management

CUNA Mutual Group Risk Alert: Counterfeit Corporate Checks

Several credit unions, including one based in Virginia, are reporting the counterfeiting of their corporate checks.

Learn more

 



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