How the government shutdown is impacting credit union mergers

One unexpected casualty of the partial government shutdown? A portal for credit union members to submit comments about pending mergers.

The National Credit Union Administration board approved measures in 2017 to increase transparency around mergers. That included creating procedures for member-to-member communication prior to a vote on a proposed merger. The provisions went into effect on Oct. 1.

But the website where members can submit their comments has been shut down due to the partial government closure that started Dec. 22 and since has become the longest in history. Instead, members now have to send comments to an NCUA email address, CUREMail@ncua.gov. They can also request the comments others have submitted through the same email address.

The NCUA is an independent government agency funded by credit unions. Because of that, it has remained open. But the comment portal is run by another agency which has been effected by the government closure.

Despite the hiccup, credit union mergers are still likely to be completed. NCUA is still able to approve transactions and institutions can still hold member votes.

“The government shutdown’s impact on the member-to-member communications portal is unfortunate and may interfere with the member voting process,” Elizabeth Eurgubian, deputy chief advocacy officer and senior counsel at the Credit Union National Association, said in a statement. “We do not, however, expect the site’s unavailability to interfere with NCUA’s review process for mergers or acquisitions.”