CURIA Will Have To Wait

WASHINGTON - (03/02/06) -- Congressional banking committees arelikely to remain occupied with an omnibus regulatory relief forcredit unions, banks and thrifts in the months before this fall'selections, making extremely unlikely a vote on the creditunion-specific relief bill, known as CURIA, according to oneleading lawmaker. "We're focused on regulatory relief now," Rep.Michael Oxley, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee,told attendees to CUNA Government Affairs Committee Tuesday. Oxleysaid the regulatory relief bill has passed his committee and hehopes it will be voted by the full House later this month. Theregulatory relief bill has many, but not all of the provisions thatCURIA has. Among the CURIA provisions absent are enactment of arisk-based capital system for credit unions and a provisionsrequiring at least 20% of members vote on conversion of a creditunion to mutual savings bank.