DOJ claims no restrictions on presidential power to remove NCUA board members

The Department of Justice—on behalf of the NCUA—argued in court filings Friday that there is no statutory language restricting the president’s at-will removal power. Friday’s filings are the latest in the lawsuit filed by former NCUA board members Todd Harper and Tanya Otsuka after they were dismissed by President Donald Trump in April.

Similar to previous filings in the lower court, the government claims Congress must use explicit language to restrict the president’s authority to remove executive officers, and no such language exists in the statute governing the NCUA.

Harper and Otsuka's reply brief is due Oct. 3, and the government’s subsequent reply is due Oct. 17. Oral argument has yet to be scheduled. In August, the U.S. Court of Appeals granted the administration’s request to keep both off the board until the litigation is resolved. 

The NCUA board, with Chairman Kyle Hauptman as the sole member, will meet Sept. 18, and the remaining 2025 meetings are listed as “tentative.”

America’s Credit Unions strongly supports a strong independent NCUA with a full, three-member board, and continues to monitor the legal proceedings.