ABA files suit against NCUA over FOM final rule

As expected, the American Bankers Association has filed a lawsuit against the National Credit Union Administration stating that the regulator’s new field of membership (FOM) rules go too far.

The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, alleging the rule “disregards Congress’ explicit instruction that community credit unions serve only a single, well-defined local community. Instead, it declares that large regions, including millions of residents and cutting across multiple states are single ‘local’ communities.”

According to Credit Union Journal, the ABA suggested the new rule goes “well beyond congressional limits” and will affect not only banks but tax payers as well. The final rule was published on the Federal Register yesterday, stating that the effective date is Feb. 6, 2017.

NCUA received approximately 11,380 comments on the proposed rule and credit unions responses were as follows:

• 31 from national and regional credit union trade associations and leagues
• 99 from individual FCUs
• 14 from federally-insured, state-chartered credit unions; and
• 8291 from individual credit union members.

The commenters generally supported the proposed rule by a ratio of approximately 3 to 1, mostly without reference to a specific proposal and without suggesting alternatives or modifications. Read more at Federal Register.