NCUA headquarters, Washington, D.C. Credit/NCUA
Officials with CUNA filed comments in the Federal Register in support of the NCUA's proposed rule to amend the charitable donation accounts portion of the incidental powers regulation to include "war veterans' organizations" to the definition of "qualified charity" that credit unions may contribute to using their charitable donation account.
The NCUA board approved the proposed rule during its May meeting to add veterans' organizations as defined by the Internal Revenue Code 501(c)(19) and aligned it "with the purposes of the current charitable donation account rule."
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In a comment letter filed Tuesday, CUNA Senior Director of Advocacy and Counsel Luke Martone said the organization supports federal credit unions using a Charitable Donation Account (CDA) to contribute to the expanded definitions of "qualified charities."
"We reached out to the NCUA last year to advocate for inclusion of 'veterans' organizations' in the definition of 'qualified charity' for purposes of the CDA rule," Martone wrote. "Aside from our belief that veterans' organizations are of such importance as to be worthy of inclusion in the 'qualified charity' definition, the impetus for our advocacy was direct feedback from our member credit unions."
CUNA stated it had asked for a similar rule expansion since June 2022.
When the proposed rule was approved by the NCUA board in May, Chairman Todd Harper said, "Within the credit union system, we have many credit unions with fields of membership that specialize in serving military branches, military bases and defense-related organizations. With this proposed rule change, we will allow them to better serve their members and to fulfill their missions. That's good for veterans, good for military families, good for credit union members, good for credit unions and good for our country."
Martone's letter also requested the NCUA add the following types of non-profit organizations to the expanded list of qualified charities:
- 501(c)(4): Civic Leagues, Social Welfare Organizations, and Local Associations of Employees.
- 501(c)(6): Business Leagues, Chambers of Commerce, and Real Estate Boards.
- 501(c)(7): Social and Recreational Clubs.
- 501(c)(29): Qualified Nonprofit Health Insurance Issuers.
Comments for the proposed rule are due by Monday, July 31.
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Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
