ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The NCUA board approved a proposed rule onThursday amending the agency's current voluntary liquidationregulations. The proposed rule only applies to federal creditunions that seek to voluntarily liquidate.

“We are not encouraging credit unions to liquidate,” said NCUAChairman Debbie Matz at the board meeting on Thursday.

If finalized, the NCUA said the rule would reduce administrativeburdens on federal credit unions and modernize the current rule in multiple ways, including:

• Allowing liquidating federal credit unions to publish requiredcreditor notices in either newspapers or electronic media;
• Specifying that preliminary partial distributions to memberscannot exceed insured account balances;
• Raising the asset size threshold for requiring multiplecreditor notices;
• Specifying when liquidating federal credit unions have todetermine member share balances for the purposes ofdistributions
• Allowing liquidating federal credit unions to distribute membershare payouts electronically, via mail or personal delivery.

Mary Ann Woodson, NCUA chief financial officer, also presentedthe NCUSIF fourth quarter statistics at the board meeting.

The NCUSIF gross investment income was $198.3 million at the endof 2013. Total income was $202.8 million.

The beginning reserve balance was $412.5 million and the endingbalance was $220.7 million.

“I believe that level is adequate,” said Woodson. “We will makeadjustments to the reserve level as needed throughout theyear.”

The NCUSIF investment balance was $11 billion as of December 31,2013.

Board Member Michael Fryzel noted that $95 million wastransferred to the corporate stabilization fund.

“The transfer is positive for the stabilization fund,” saidWoodson.

In March 2013, the NCUSIF equity ratio was 1.31% and 1.30% inDecember.

Matz congratulated Woodson and her staff for their work on thereport, calling it very technical and complex.

“Protecting the Share Insurance Fund is NCUA's top priority, andthe 2013 year-end results reflect the agency's prudent managementand effective approach to regulation,” Matz said. “The metricscontinue trending in the right direction. The number of federalcredit unions with CAMEL codes 3, 4 and 5 continued to decline, asdid the exposure level of potential losses.”

The amount of CAMEL code 3, 4 and 5 credit unions dropped 7.9%to 1,787 at the end of 2013, down from from 1,940 in 2012.