National Credit Union Administration December 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The NCUA Board (Board) is continuing its comprehensive review of its regulations to identify outdated, unnecessary, or burdensome regulatory requirements imposed on federally insured credit unions, as contemplated by section 2222 of the Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act of 1996 (EGRPRA). This second decennial review of regulations began when the Board issued its first EGRPRA notice on May 22, 2014, covering the two categories of ``Applications and Reporting'' and ``Powers and Activities.'' \1\ The second notice followed, covering the three categories of ``Agency Programs,'' ``Capital,'' and ``Consumer Protection,'' which was published on December 19, 2014.\2\ The third notice was published on June 24, 2015, and covered the next three categories of rules: ``Corporate Credit Unions,'' ``Directors, Officers and Employees,'' and ``Money Laundering.'' \3\ This fourth and final notice covers the remaining two categories: ``Rules of Procedure'' and ``Safety and Soundness.'' This review process presents a significant opportunity to consider the possibilities for burden reduction in groups of similar regulations. The Board welcomes comment on the categories, the order of review, and all other aspects of this initiative in order to maximize the review's effectiveness.

The NCUA Board proposes to comprehensively amend its chartering and field of membership rules to put them in a more efficient framework and to maximize access to federal credit union services to the extent permitted by law. The amendments will implement changes in policy affecting: The definition of a local community, a rural district, and an underserved area; the expansion of multiple common bond credit unions and members' proximity to them; the expansion of single common bond credit unions based on a trade, industry or profession; and the process for applying to charter or expand a federal credit union.

NCUA intends to submit the following information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and clearance under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). The purpose of this notice is to allow for 30 days of public comment. The information collection relates to NCUA's regulation on conversions of federally insured credit unions (FICUs) to mutual savings banks (MSBs) and mergers of FICUs into banks. The regulation requires an insured credit union that proposes to convert to an MSB or merge into a bank to provide notice and disclosure of the proposal to members and NCUA and to conduct a membership vote.