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Another example of the benefits of strong legislative engagement and relationships occurred just before the Senate went into its August recess when two of the three senators that introduced a bill supported by the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) and your League were from Maine. Senators King and Collins, along with Senator Portman of Ohio, introduced S. 2006 - The Regulatory Accountability Act of 2015, a bill aimed at modernizing federal rulemaking including revising the one-size-fits-all regulations in recent years that have added to the increasing regulatory burdens facing credit unions.
The Senate bill is a companion to the Regulatory Accountability Act of 2015 (H.R. 185), which was introduced in January and subsequently passed the House with strong support from CUNA.
Specifically, the Senate's S. 2006 would:
- Codify the duty of regulators to analyze costs and benefits of new regulations and would require the agencies to adopt the least costly, or most cost-effective approach;
- Permit a judicial check on an agency's cost-benefit analysis of major rules;
- Invite early public participation on major rules and require agencies to disclose the data they rely upon when making a decision; and
- Require agencies to follow a more evidence-based approach when crafting rules that will cost more than $1 billion annually.
"Since 2008, there have been more than 200 rules and regulations that have taken effect that impact credit union operations. The burden and cost of complying with all of these regulations to credit unions is significant. Having a process that takes into account before it becomes law would be helpful. We appreciate the leadership of both Senator King and Collins in being original co-sponsors of this legislation," stated your League's President John Murphy.
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