National Credit Union Administration Chairman Todd Harper railed against the overdraft fee practices of some federal credit unions Thursday, in a speech at the Defense Credit Union Council annual meeting in Naples, Fl.
Also speaking at the conference, NCUA board member Rodney Hood renewed his pitch for the establishment of a credit union advisory committee at the NCUA.
House Democrats, led by Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., are renewing efforts to rein in overdraft fees charged by financial institutions.
Maloney, who was joined by 31 Democratic colleagues in introducing H.R. 4277, has introduced similar legislation each Congress since 2009.
The National Credit Union Administration will consider adopting two final rules at its meeting Thursday, but the board continues to steer clear of the politically divisive rule proposals that have badly divided the board along political lines.
The board will consider rules on the capitalization of interest and implementation of the Current Expected Credit Loss methodology. The board also will discuss the credit union loan interest rate ceiling.
The National Credit Union Administration board may issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking to solicit comments on changes to the interest rate ceiling for loans made by credit unions in the coming months, according to the Spring version of the federal regulatory agenda that was released Friday.
National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Union President/CEO B. Dan Berger on Tuesday asked the National Credit Union Administration board to finalize several proposed rules even though board Chairman Todd Harper has made it clear he opposes them.
Under current National Credit Union Administration rules, negative balances need to be resolved in 45 days. In December, the board approved a proposed rule that allows credit unions to establish their own specific time limits to resolve negative balances. Credit unions argue this is good for credit unions and their members, but consumer advocacy groups and NCUA Chairman Todd Harper are not convinced.
At the first meeting since Kyle Hauptman was sworn in as a member of the National Credit Union Administration, the board approved an interim final rule on overdrafts and a proposed rule on mortgage servicing. It also approved a change to its Multiple Common Bond credit union rule that board member Todd Harper believes violates the Federal Credit Union Act.
With stimulus legislation stalled in Congress, the Credit Union National Association and the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions argue that the National Credit Union Administration should help credit unions survive the coronavirus economic crisis by adjusting regulations.
National Credit Union Administration board nominee Kyle Hauptman told the Senate Banking Committee recently that he believes that the NCUA should give credit unions “significant incentives” to become Minority Depository Institutions.
Financial regulators, including the National Credit Union Administration, should “do the right thing” and prohibit banks and credit unions from charging any overdraft or insufficient fund fees during the pandemic, the Center for Responsible Lending said in a new report Wednesday.
But a credit union affiliated with the center is not following that recommendation and is only waiving insufficient fund fees for up to two items a month.