COVID-19 Phase III stimulus provisions to help credit unions provide financial safety to consumers
WASHINGTON, DC (March 27, 2020) — The House today passed the Phase III coronavirus disease (COVID-19) stimulus package, supported by the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) and its League partners. The bill was amended to include credit unions in several provisions that, through drafting oversights, had previously only included banks and other lenders in provisions meant to support and protect consumer finances. The President is expected to sign the bill into law shortly.
“This bill is vital to ensuring credit unions can continue to offer services that ensure consumers remain financially healthy amid the rippling effects of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said CUNA President/CEO Jim Nussle. “We thank legislators for recognizing our concerns and we look forward to applying these provisions across our essential service industry. America’s credit unions are putting their people-over-profit model to work to help keep communities financially secure during these uncertain times.”
Credit union provisions in the bill include language:
- Making credit unions eligible to participate in the paycheck protection program, which would allow for 100% federally guaranteed loans to small businesses that maintain their payroll;
- Reestablishing the Transaction Account Guarantee Program, in which the government guarantees certain noninterest-bearing transaction accounts;
- Including credit unions in troubled debt restructuring, allowing credit unions to further modify existing loans;
- Expanding National Credit Union Administration’s (NCUA) Central Liquidity Facility (CLF), which serves as a liquidity lender to credit unions experiencing unusual or unexpected liquidity shortfalls; and
- Including credit unions in a current expected credit loss (CECL) delay for those entities currently required to comply with CECL.
As the legislative and executive policy responses to the COVID-19 crisis continue to take shape, CUNA and the Leagues are engaging lawmakers to support policies that enable and enhance credit unions’ service to their communities during the COVID-19 crisis. A collection of these efforts can be found in at www.americascreditunions.org.
About CUNA
Credit Union National Association (CUNA) is the only national association that advocates on behalf of all of America’s credit unions, which are owned by 135 million consumer members. CUNA, along with its network of affiliated state credit union leagues, delivers unwavering advocacy, continuous professional growth and operational confidence to protect the best interests of all credit unions. For more information about CUNA, visit cuna.org. To find your nearest credit union, visit YourMoneyFurther.com.
