NCUA Board hears briefings on AI, ombudsman, CLF

July 25, 2025

A three-person NCUA Board heard briefings on artificial intelligence (AI), the Office of the Ombudsman, and the Central Liquidity Facility (CLF) at the agency’s July meeting. Reinstated NCUA Board members Tanya Otsuka and Todd Harper attended the meeting with NCUA Board Chair Kyle Hauptman; Otsuka in person, Harper virtually. 

The two were reinstated by a federal judge this week after being dismissed by the president in April, and the administration filed for a stay to keep them off the board while an appeal is considered. The judge declined to issue a stay Thursday, and the government will likely file its appeal with the D.C. Court of Appeals. 

Highlights from the AI briefing include:

  • NCUA staff discussed known use cases for AI within the credit union industry, NCUA.gov’s new AI resource page for credit unions, and how AI may support NCUA’s internal operations;
  • It also discussed report findings from a May 2025 report by the Government Accountability Office recommending NCUA update its model risk management guidance. The NCUA conducted a review of existing guidance and concluded that focusing solely on model risk management would not provide timely, use-case appropriate guidance for all of the ways that credit unions are, or could be, using AI; and
  • Any new requirements from possible guidance would need to be established through the rulemaking process.

Relatedly, the White House released an AI action plan earlier this week aligned an executive order addressing the issue.

Ombudsman Shameka Sutton provided an overview of the office’s functions and shared results from last year’s post-exam surveys. One highlight was that 41% of respondents reported too many duplicative requests for exam documents.

Sutton listed several actions the agency can take to minimize these requests, including modifying the MERIT examination system, researching system enhancements, improving secure file transfer procedures, and updating internal examiner guidance.

The CLF briefing described its functions and current state, and noted as of June 30 it had:

  • 447 total members;
  • $1.03 billion in assets;
  • $22.7 billion in borrowing authority;
  • $20.1 million in investment income;
  • $16.4 million in dividends;
  • $2.2 million in net income after dividends;
  • $0.95 million in operating expenses; and
  • $46.1 million in retained earnings.

The NCUA Board will tentatively meet next Sept. 18; the board does not historically conduct a meeting in August.