Sacramento, CA. Credit: Marcus/Adobe Stock
California’s credit union industry is mounting strong opposition to Assembly Bill 801, warning that the proposed state-level Community Reinvestment Act (CCRA) would impose costly and unnecessary regulations on credit unions.
In a joint letter to Assembly member Mia Bonta, the bill’s sponsor, the California Credit Union League, America’s Credit Unions, the African-American Credit Union Coalition and the Defense Credit Union Council wrote that AB 801 “imposes an unnecessary and duplicative regulatory burden on credit unions” that could undermine their ability to serve members.
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AB 801, according to the Assembly Committee on Banking and Finance analysis, would require credit unions and other state-chartered financial institutions to “actively meet the financial needs of the communities they serve — including low- and moderate-income (LMI) and communities of color” while operating safely.
Credit union leaders argued the bill fails to recognize their unique structure. “Credit unions are financial cooperatives that exist solely to provide pooled funds for member-owners and should be recognized as the good actors they are,” the trades wrote in their opposition letter.
“Due to their unique structure, credit unions don’t need a push to serve people of modest means — doing so is embedded in the mission of all credit unions,” they added.
The opposition letter warned that the bill’s “additional compliance burdens, reporting requirements and examination costs would only detract from the ability of credit unions to deliver on their mission-driven service to members.”
Supporters of AB 801, including the California Legislative Black Caucus and Rise Economy, argued the bill is needed to combat “persistent gaps in access to financial services” and ensure that “all financial institutions profiting from our communities invest in addressing critical needs” like affordable housing and small business development.
The bill is pending further committee consideration.
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Michael Ogden
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.
