United States Capitol dome silhouette and the national flags of U.S. rounding Washington Monument – Washington D.C. (Image: Shutterstock).
A bipartisan group of House members, led by Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas), has introduced legislation that would exclude loans to veterans from the credit union Member Business Loan cap.
The bill also would exclude extensions of credit to veterans from the definition of Member Business Loan. The exemption would be available to any veteran who served on active duty and was released under conditions other than dishonorable.
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"It is important to create economic opportunities for veterans and increase access to capital for small business formation," Congressman Gonzalez said.
Cosponsor Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) pointed out that the national unemployment rate for military veterans was 3.5% in 2018.
The bill is being cosponsored by Republican Reps. Don Young of Alaska and Paul Cook of California.
The measure is the Defense Credit Union Council's top legislative priority for 2019, according to council officials, who added that in November, the Small Business Administration and Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that there were low business loan approval rates for veterans.
"We look forward to working with Congress and the Executive Branch to open up additional channels for military members to obtain safe access to business loans so they can participate and build our economy," said Tony Hernandez, DCUC's president/CEO.
CUNA and NAFCU have been pushing for more freedom to make business loans and both groups endorsed the legislation.
"This thoughtful legislation will provide credit unions the opportunity to provide more help to veterans and their small business needs," said CUNA President/CEO Jim Nussle. "The bill will make the decision for credit unions to offer veterans access to capital much easier and provide more veterans opportunity."
And Brad Thaler, NAFCU vice president of legislative affairs said, "This bipartisan bill will improve veterans' access to necessary capital by removing regulatory barriers that hinder credit unions' ability to meet the financial needs of our nation's veterans."
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