The announcement came as a surprise, especially so soon after the culmination of the NCUA's 18-month study of its policy on chartering and field of membership. The agency and credit unions worked to hammer out policies on several controversial issues during the different comment periods with final rules adopted by the NCUA board in July 1989.

One result of that study was the elimination of national charters for associational credit unions like the one granted to AARP Federal Credit Union, and a system for dealing with cross-regional charters. While there was no rollback on the policy permitting credit unions to add select employee groups (SEGs), the agency did make clear it would look to the CU's financial health and its success in gaining members from groups it added before approving additional groups.

The concept being discussed by the NAFCU board calls for credit unions to focus on untapped membership within their current field of membership rather than adding new groups. 

Credit unions would be asked to voluntarily impose a moratorium on expanding their field of membership. No time limit on such a moratorium has been agreed to, NAFCU Director of Communications Pat Keefe said. Nor is the board looking for a change in regulation or legislation.

The idea of a moratorium was floated after the Board's meeting in March and will be discussed again when they meet in June. Keefe said NAFCU members have not been formally surveyed on the issue. However, association executives are receiving phone calls of support, as well as some expressing concern about the political ramifications of raising the issue.

One CU executive who said he doesn't support the idea is Eastern Financial FCU President Art DeRusso.

"I'm not at all in favor of it," he said from Miami. "We just started sensibly opening up charters to provide credit union service to more people."

Not only do SEGs bring CUs to workers at small companies, but they are "our saviors" when the major sponsoring company has problems. DeRusso added. Eastern Financial FCU, formerly Eastern Airlines FCU has aggressively added groups over the past several years. That diversity in membership is the reason the credit union can serve its members today, DeRusso said.

The American Bankers Association's study of credit unions cites Eastern Financial as an example of a CU that has expanded its common bond through the addition of more than 600 SEGs. In January, Eastern received NCUA permission to add an additional 147 employer groups. Most of the groups added by credit unions continue to be small employee groups.

 In a typical month, NCUA regional offices approve expansions for over 300 credit unions. For example, in February, 409 amendments were approved for 348 credit unions with a potential membership increase of 92,186, according to NCUA reports. Only 30 of those credit unions added groups.