Congress has an opportunity to enable credit unions to increase their service to people in need of financial services through several pieces of CUNA-League supported legislation, CUNA wrote to a House committee Wednesday. CUNA’s letter was submitted for the record of the House Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth’s hearing on supporting small businesses.

“Credit unions recognize that access to capital is critical to ensuring the survival of many of our nation’s most vulnerable small businesses,” the letter reads. “While credit unions are relatively small players in the depository arena (40% operate with 5 or fewer full-time-equivalent employees), we serve 130 million members – many in vulnerable communities that have been bearing an especially heavy burden throughout the pandemic. CUNA strongly supports [Member Business Loan Expansion Act] and believes it is a solid step forward in preserving America’s small businesses.”

The bills include:

• The Expanding Financial Access for Underserved Communities Act (H.R. 7003), introduced by House Financial Services Chairwomen Maxine Waters, D-Calif., and Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., which would allow federal credit unions to add underserved areas to their field of membership and exempt business loans made by credit unions in underserved areas from the credit union member business lending cap
• The Member Business Loan Expansion Act (H.R. 5189), introduced by Reps. Vicente Gonzalez (D, Texas) and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., would allow NCUA to enable credit unions to make loans with maturity limits more than 15 years.