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Though the Second Regulator Session of the 128th Maine Legislature is barely a week old, it has already produced a significant win for Maine's credit unions. On Tuesday, the Judiciary Committee voted unanimously to kill L.D. 1355 - An Act to Ensure the Timely and Proper Completion of Residential Foreclosures, a bill that would not benefit credit unions or members.
L.D. 1355 was part of a package of foreclosure-related bills which were carried over from last session. Over the summer, the League convened a foreclosure working group that consisted of representatives from nearly 20 credit unions. The League held two sessions of the group in Westbrook and Bangor, and both sessions featured significant time spent on discussing the bills and the group reached the conclusion that the current approach featured "one-sided changes that did not benefit credit unions and members."
Prior to the work session this week, the League sent a letter to the Committee outlining its concerns and its reasons for opposing the bill. In its letter, your League wrote, "A big factor in our decision to urge an 'ought not to pass' vote, was what we perceived as the continual, one-sided changes to the bill. Some of the changes we were apprised of prior to work sessions, some hours before, and others at the time of the work session. MECUL operates as the primary advocate for credit unions in Maine. We hesitate to speak on behalf of credit unions without their input because our purpose in Augusta is to ensure that they have the strongest voice possible in legislation that affects the way they serve their members. We understand that the nature of the legislative process means that it is not always possible to consult our members regarding every issue, but we felt that the way the amendments were presented did not reflect the good faith effort that we put forth to come to an agreement on a bill that we opposed from the outset."
"The input of credit unions was very important in helping us to understand the impact that this bill would have, and to relay that impact and concerns to the Committee. This bill is a direct result of why involvement and engagement from our credit unions is crucial to the legislative process. We appreciate all that participated and helped to contribute to this outcome," said Elise Baldacci, Vice President of Governmental Affairs for the Maine CU League. Baldacci said the League suggested to the Committee that "an approach that looks at the problems with the foreclosure law from all sides to find solutions that are manageable for both the homeowner and the financial institution be taken moving forward."
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