CA/NV Leagues Vote to Offer Membership Choice

Although the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues had initially shown support for the dual CUNA/league membership requirement, now that CUNA has reversed course on this issue, the two western state associations have followed suit.

Indeed, when the debate over "duality" versus "optionality" was still at its most heated, the two leagues' joint president, Diana Dykstra, had indicated at their annual meeting in November that they were supporting the requirement that credit unions belong to both CUNA and their respective state leagues—but she also promised her member credit unions that the board would continue to explore the question further.

Just days after credit unions started receiving the voting packets on CUNA's proposed restated bylaws—which notably eliminates the dual membership requirement—the boards from both the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues on Tuesday announced they have approved membership choice - meaning CUs in the two states will be able to choose between membership in their state league and/or CUNA.

The vote took place at a meeting on Feb. 8. The new policy will be implemented in 2017 in conjunction with the dues cycle, the two leagues said.

"Optionality was a decision with complex ramifications and we felt it deserved careful study," Chuck Papenfus, board chairman of the California Credit Union League and president of $42 million Inland Valley FCU in Fontana, Calif., said in a statement. "Ultimately, we believe an efficient, two-tiered system is best for the movement, however the time was right to provide a choice for California credit unions when spending member dollars."

"While we were appropriately deliberative in reaching the decisions for our two state associations to support optionality, ultimately the hand-wringing and angst our system has gone through for the last several months only truly makes a difference if credit unions that are currently outside of the process decide to reengage in the spirit of cooperation upon which our movement was founded," said Wally Murray, board chairman of the Nevada Credit Union League and president of $584 million Greater Nevada CU in Carson City, Nev. "In the end, that is the only way we can collectively protect and advance the credit union charter for the benefit of American consumers and the businesses they own."

"We are pleased to offer the opportunity for choice, and we will continue to advocate for a strong working relationship between credit unions, CUNA and the leagues," said Diana Dykstra, president and CEO of the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues. "We support interdependence because there is power in that, especially in our joint advocacy efforts - and that power is unrivaled, even envied, among associations throughout the United States."

The elimination of the dual-membership requirement is not the only issue addressed in CUNA's restated bylaws. CUNA members also are being asked to vote on a new dues structure and the possibility of reducing the size of the CUNA board. Ballots are due March 18, with results scheduled to be announced March 21.

The issue of membership choice became the hottest topic in credit union land last fall. Some leagues (Michigan, New York, Ohio, the Carolinas League, and the League of Southeastern Credit Unions, representing Florida and Alabama) voted to allow direct membership without joining CUNA; while others (the Mountain West CU Association, representing Colorado, Wyoming and Arizona, along with leagues in Wisconsin and Utah) issued formal statements supporting the requirement that CUs maintain dual membership.