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NAFCU on Thursday elevated several credit union issues – including payday alternative loans, data collection related to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) and small business lending, and remittances – to Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Director Kathy Kraninger during a financial services industry roundtable. NAFCU has shared credit unions' concerns and priorities with Kraninger since she was confirmed as director in December.

NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger and Executive Vice President of Government Affairs and General Counsel Carrie Hunt attended the meeting.

Following Kraninger's confirmation, NAFCU hand delivered a letter with bureau-specific priorities, including the need for:

• the bureau to use its exemption authority to excuse credit unions from certain rulemakings;

• "clear, transparent guidance" from the bureau on its expectations for credit unions under the unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts and practices (UDAAP) law;

• Congress and regulators to address "supervisory gaps that may result in poor oversight of non-bank financial companies," such as fintech companies;

• an exemption from the bureau's payday lending rule for new iterations of the NCUA's payday alternative lending (PAL) program;

• a shift at the bureau from a single director to a bipartisan commission, as well as making the bureau subject to the congressional appropriations process;

• an exemption for all credit unions, regardless of asset size, from the bureau's supervisory and enforcement authority; and

• reforms to the bureau's consumer complaint database and a ceasing of publication of unverifiable consumer complaint data.

Kraninger followed up on the letter with a call to Berger to further discuss credit union priorities.

NAFCU is also currently monitoring the bureau's progress on its fall rulemaking agenda, which indicated a proposed rule early this year to address concerns with its 2017 payday lending rule, adjustments to collection and reporting thresholds under HMDA and an assessment of the TILA/RESPA integrated disclosure (TRID) rule.

The association remains active with the bureau through meetings, letters and calls, and will continue to press for these top credit union issues to be addressed now and throughout 2019.