NAFCU has earned a position of high regard within the CU industry, on Capitol Hill and within the administration. I am proud to have been elected as its board chair for the coming year. I look forward to working with the board and staff to help ensure CUs have a positive legislative and regulatory framework that allows them to keep serving members' needs and to build long-lasting prosperity.
In addition to serving as NAFCU's chairman, I am also fortunate to be the president and CEO of SRP FCU in North Augusta, S.C. I have held this position for 26 years, so I speak from experience when I say there is no group of financial institutions more committed than credit unions to ensuring the best interests of the consumers they serve.
Unfortunately, CUs have been subjected to copious new regulations designed to resolve a financial crisis they didn't create. This is why NAFCU's reply to over-regulation in the industry — "enough is enough" — reverberates so well. I will continue to advance that message during my time as NAFCU chairman, particularly during the association's Congressional Caucus in Washington.
I look forward to this annual can't-miss event, and this year it is even more significant, occurring just a few short weeks before a mid-term election. Caucus is an important opportunity to meet with and remind lawmakers about credit unions' role in their communities, let them know about what's important to credit union members and assure them of support as Nov. 4 approaches.
In my own state of South Carolina, Republican Sen. Tim Scott and Democratic Rep. James Clyburn are among the numerous credit union friends in Congress who won in this year's primaries. Most are expected to win handily, but others face more difficulties. The coming weeks are going to be critical for these lawmakers, and it is essential that credit unions remain engaged.
The discussions about to take place in Washington are an important aspect of our engagement with lawmakers on key issues throughout the year, and the results show. With your help, NAFCU was able to help persuade 324 members of Congress to sign a letter to NCUA expressing concerns with its proposed risk-based capital rule. This is perhaps the broadest level of interest seen by lawmakers in recent history regarding a specific federal rulemaking for credit unions. Credit unions let their lawmakers know how this issue stands to affect their ability to serve members, and that is what sealed the deal.
There is a silver lining here as well, and that is the attention Congress is giving to a growing number of key CU issues. NAFCU-sought legislation has already advanced to bring relief from the yearly privacy notice mailing requirement imposed under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. This legislation, H.R. 749, introduced by Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., has cleared the full House, and the similar S. 635, introduced by Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Jerry Moran, R-Kan., has attracted 72 co-sponsors. (CFPB is working on its own final rule that would put a measure of relief in place now.) The House has also passed and sent to the Senate H.R. 3468, introduced by Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., to give CUs parity with banks in the provision of Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts (IOLTAs).
These actions advance key elements of NAFCU's five-point plan for regulatory relief. However, they would not be happening if credit unions were not also getting their message across to lawmakers about our value to consumers and the frustrating effect that onerous rules have on their ability to serve members well.
I hope that all credit unions are taking the opportunity to contact your U.S. representatives and senators regularly and sharing your stories of how their decisions affect constituents and credit unions' ability to help them meet their financial goals. We want these stories to remain top-of-mind as lawmakers head into this year's elections.
Credit unions have been through some trying times, and they have proved their resiliency. Many challenges remain, but I know that the industry will face these head on and come out on top. I am looking forward to addressing these during our Congressional Caucus and working to advance positive outcomes for the credit union industry throughout the coming year.
Ed Templeton is the president and CEO of SRP Federal Credit Union and is the chairman of NAFCU.
