OLYMPIA, Wash. – State regulations barring senior officers from obtaining member business loans under the state’s conflict of interest rules includes senior vice presidents, but not rank and file vice presidents, state regulators ruled.
Since the terms “vice president” and “assistant chief executive officers” are defined in the state’s credit union statute, the Director of CUs in the Department of Financial Institutions has broad powers to interpret the statute, the regulator told one credit union that boasts as many as 25 vice presidents, which includes branch managers.
As a result, senior vice presidents may be considered officers, or “executive officers,” and are thus barred from obtaining an MBL from their credit union, while regular vice presidents are not considered executive officers and are not barred.
