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NAFCU this week will continue leading advocacy efforts to delay the NCUA's risk-based capital (RBC) rule as the agency considers a proposed rule to delay it by one year. NAFCU supports an appropriate RBC system for credit unions, but has urged the most recent RBC rule be modified or effective date delayed due to the negative impact it could have on credit unions. 

As a result of NAFCU's advocacy on Capitol Hill, a provision to delay the NCUA's current RBC rule by two years has passed the House three times. Here is a rundown of the existing opportunities to delay the NCUA's RBC rule:

• NCUA action: On the NCUA Board's agenda this week is a proposed rule related to RBC. NCUA Chairman J. Mark McWatters, in a letter last week to Reps. Bill Posey, R-Fla., and Denny Heck, D-Wash., said the proposal would delay the rule by one year and would also raise the definition of a complex credit union from $100 million to $500 million. Posey and Heck introduced in March NAFCU-sought legislation to delay the rule by two years. NAFCU will provide members an update following the meeting.

• FY 2019 Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) appropriations bill: The Senate will vote this week on its FSGG bill. The House-passed version of the bill included language from Posey and Heck's bill to delay the RBC rule by two years. Although the Senate version does not include the same provision, it could be included when the two chambers reconcile their differences. NAFCU has also advocated for other provisions to be included in the final appropriations bill.

• JOBS Act 3.0: The House recently passed the bipartisan JOBS and Investor Confidence Act of 2018 (JOBS Act 3.0) which included the two-year RBC-delay provision. NAFCU has urged Senate leadership to take up the bill.

The association will also be monitoring the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which is set to expire tomorrow. The House last week passed NAFCU-backed legislation that would reauthorize it until Nov. 30. The Senate is expected to vote on the bill before it expires.

The Senate is expected to vote on the final conference report of the FY 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which the House passed last week and the president is expected to sign. Although the final NDAA conference report does not include the RBC-delay provision, NAFCU efforts did lead conferees to remove a provision that would have allowed banks to operate rent free on military installations.

While the Senate is in session this week, House members are back in their home districts for August recess. This is a great opportunity for credit unions to reach out to their representatives on top industry issues, including the ongoing push for regulatory relief. NAFCU's Grassroots Action Center allows credit unions to find contact information for their lawmakers and look up key credit union-related legislation to see where their members of Congress stand on those bills.

Also happening this week:

• the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Federal Reserve's monetary-policy setting arm, begins a two-day meeting tomorrow;

• comments are due to NAFCU Wednesday on the Department of Housing and Urban Development's review of its implementation of the Fair Housing Act's disparate impact standard;

• a webinar Wednesday will address the fundamental principles of unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices (UDAAP); and

• a webinar Thursday featuring NAFCU Executive Vice President and COO Anthony Demangone will share irrelevancy risks facing credit unions.