California Credit Unions Beats Back Bank-Style CRA Requirements
By CU Today Staff —
SACRAMENTO, Calif.--Protecting credit unions from regulations that would treat them as for-profit banks, California’s Credit Unions secured key changes to a General Assembly bill that would have expanded Community Reinvestment Act-type requirements to credit unions. While California’s Credit Unions still opposes the amended bill, it has significant improvements over the original, America's Credit Unions reported.
The bill was updated as part of both state chambers’ Appropriations Committees working through nearly 800 bills last week.
“We’re pleased that the original State CRA proposal did not move forward. California’s credit unions are already deeply rooted in the communities they serve, and imposing a bank-style regulatory framework on not-for-profit, member-owned institutions would have created significant new burdens without recognizing the fundamental differences between credit unions and banks,” said Robert Wilson, executive vice president for California’s Credit Unions. “We appreciate that lawmakers heard our concerns, and we’ll continue working with them on policies that protect consumers while allowing credit unions to focus on serving their members and communities.”
Several other credit union victories took place within the state House and Senate Appropriations Committees, with privacy and contract proposals stopped from moving forward, ACU added.
Originally reported by CU Today.