State-chartered CUs in NY Win Parity with Fed-charters

LATHAM, N.Y.–Gov. Eliot Spitzer has signed into law a bill that gives state-chartered credit unions parity with their federal counterparts, according to the New York State CU League. The so-called wild card bill authorizes state-chartered credit unions to request additional powers from the New York State Banking Department without going through a sometimes-lengthy legislative process as long as they are powers federal credit unions already have under federal statutes. The law was originally enacted in March 1997 to provide competitive and regulatory parity between New York state-chartered banks and their federal counterparts. However, this law did not extend these essential provisions to credit unions. The league said getting this law enacted has been a legislative priority for many years.