FEBRUARY 2013 NUMBER 2

WWW.NCUA.GOV

HIGHLIGHTS

2 Chairman’s Corner Volunteer Directors Play Critical Role In Safety & Soundness

3 Board Actions Board Extends Low-Income Credit Union Acceptance Deadline and Finalizes “Troubled Condition” Regulation

4 Board Perspective The Extra 30

5 Urgent Needs Grants Help Credit Unions Recover From Sandy

6 2013 Regulation Review List Now Available

6 New NCUA Consumer Reports Video Series Educates Consumers

7 NCUA Seeks Collaboration Grant Proposals

8 Credit Union Benefit Plans —The Basics

9 2013 Brings Changes to Adverse Action and Risk-Based Pricing Notices

9 Agencies Issue Final Rule on Appraisals for Higher-Priced Mortgage Loans

10 America and Military Saves Week Begins Feb. 25

10 Connect With NCUA on LinkedIn

SMALL CREDIT UNION DEFINITION RISES TO
$50 MILLION, EASING REGULATORY BURDENS

At its first meeting of 2013, the NCUA Board approved a final rule that amends the definition of “small entity” from the former threshold of less than $10 million in assets to less than $50 million in assets.

and reviewing the comments, we determined
that we could raise the threshold to cover
credit unions with less than $50 million in
assets without significantly affecting industry
safety and soundness.”
“Small credit unions are essential to their
communities and fill a niche other financial
institutions can’t,” said NCUA Board
Chairman Debbie Matz. “So, at NCUA we’re
regularly searching for ways to help small
credit unions thrive and succeed. Consistent
with our Regulatory Modernization Initiative,
this final rule nearly doubles the number of
small credit unions receiving regulatory relief.

“This final rule is also an excellent example
of how NCUA listens carefully during the
rulemaking process. Last fall, we proposed
a small asset threshold of less than $30
million. After conducting further analysis
Under the revised definition for a “small
entity,” 2,270 more federally insured credit
unions will receive special consideration for
regulatory relief. The updated threshold
almost doubles the number of federally
insured credit unions with regulatory
exemptions through the small credit union
definition. In all, the final rule covers
4,672 or 67.8 percent of federally insured
credit unions.

This change provides regulatory relief to small credit unions in several ways. First, the rule excludes more credit unions from the risk-based net worth requirements under