Credit union, FHLB partnership remains important
Legislation currently introduced would help smaller credit unions join the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) System America’s Credit Unions wrote to a House subcommittee Monday ahead of an oversight hearing on FHLBs.
Credit unions are not included in the definition of “community financial institutions” in the text of the FHLB Act, and the bipartisan Minimizing Outdated Restrictions that Exclude (MORE) Opportunities for Homeownership Act (H.R 7647) would make a needed update to the statute. Introduced by Reps Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), H.R. 7647 would add credit unions to the “community financial institution” definition to ensure credit union parity with banks in this issue. The letter urged the subcommittee to support this effort as that starting point for any changes to the FHLB Act.
The association also noted that draft legislation that is scheduled for discussion during the hearing is generally supported by America’s Credit Unions, including Home Loan Bank Mortgage Asset Modernization Act, the Federal Home Loan Bank Advances as Core Funding Act, the Federal Home Loan Bank Membership Clarification Act and the Federal Home Loan Bank Capital Clarification Act of 2026, all of which would provide clarity and modernizations to the FHLB System.