PHILADELPHIA (8/17/15)--The volume of regulations to hit credit unions since the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act has been unlike anything prior to that landmark 2010 legislation, credit union officials told the Philadelphia Business Journal last week.

The story highlights the increasing compliance burdens that come along with a one-size-fits-all regulatory climate.

It cites a recent SNL Financial survey that found 29% of participating credit unions had a 30% increase in compliance costs, 58% said Dodd-Frank had a negative impact on the health of the credit union industry and 46% said the creation of the CFPB was the biggest change since the law went into effect

"I know from our members that the volume of regulation over the past five years has been unlike any prior period starting with the creation of the (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau)," said Mike Wishnow, senior vice president at the Pennsylvania Credit Union Association, who added that “even the biggest credit unions are small” compared with banks. That means they sometimes have to work harder to provide the same services and products.

The article notes that credit unions’ have not-for-profit status and volunteer board members. They have no shareholders, instead returning profits to members in the form of lower fees, better savings and loan rates, and even dividends.  And it can be a challewnge for credit unins to compete with banks’ bigger resources.

Vince Market, chief financial officer of TruMark Financial CU, Trevose, Pa., said if the one-size-fits-all style of regulations isn’t changed soon, there will likely be further consolidation within the credit union system.