Michigan CUs Eye new Reform Law

LANSING, Mich. – Credit union representatives began kicking around new ideas for legislative reform, including giving management more power to expel members; authorizing trust powers and easing CUSO rules. A group organized by the Michigan CU League met May 24 to review the four-year-old CU Reform law and decide whether new reforms ought to be made. The panel made several recommendations, including: allowing management to expel or suspend members, an authority now reserved for the board; allowing credit unions to expel members for unusual account activity; expanding powers to offer estate, or trust accounts; and expediting the field of membership expansion process. The panel also recommended provisions allowing credit union CEOs to receive automated loan approvals without obtaining prior approval from the board for each loan; and allowing senior management to receive commissions on loans, as long as they are not involved in the underwriting process.