WASHINGTON (12/2/15)--As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) moves closer to releasing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for small-dollar, payday loans, CUNA continues to meet with bureau staff to advocate on credit unions' behalf.

Again this week, CUNA urged CFPB staff to consider how certain proposals under consideration could be problematic for credit unions and impede their ability to provide needed small-dollar loans to their members. CUNA specifically recommends that the CFPB move forward judiciously to assure that the credit union Payday Alternative Loan program can continue and that no additional compliance burdens are added.

CUNA also underscored to the agency staff that credit unions are currently facing an unprecedented amount of regulatory burden.

Elizabeth Eurgubian, deputy chief advocacy officer; Mike Schenk, vice president of economics and statistics; and Andy Price and Leah Dempsey, senior directors of advocacy and counsel, represented CUNA at the Monday meeting with CFPB staff.

During the meeting, CUNA staff also highlighted that credit unions believe these types of loans are important but that credit unions make very little profit from them. Any roadblocks to participating in this market, even if they are not extremely burdensome, could have the effect of causing credit unions to re-evaluate participation, CUNA advised.

The most recent bureau rulemaking agenda indicates that the CFPB plans to release a proposed rule in February 2016 for small-dollar, payday loans and that it will also release additional research on this topic.