NCUA Board Member Tanya F. Otsuka gives a statement on NCUA's 2024 Annual Performance Plan.
As Prepared for Delivery on January 18, 2024
Thank you for your presentation. I appreciate NCUA’s transparency, and the measures included in the Performance Plan. I think it is important for the NCUA to understand how credit unions are using technology to enhance member services and improve their operations.
Technology is important in our changing financial system. It is critical for us to make sure that technology is used in a safe and sound manner and that it does not harm members or violate consumer protection laws. The NCUA should be ensuring that credit unions are appropriately engaging and overseeing third party vendors and technology providers to mitigate and manage risks.
I also appreciate the goals established related to financial inclusion. The performance plan includes a target to increase coordination between NCUA and the CDFI Fund. CDFI credit unions play an important role in helping reach underserved and marginalized communities. Enhanced coordination between NCUA and the CDFI Fund will help ensure CDFI credit unions have the resources to best support their members.
The annual performance plan also includes a new metric related to underserved area field of membership (FOM) expansions. These expansions can be a tool to increase credit unions opportunity to help underserved communities, but it’s important that they include meaningful access through convenient offices and branches and lower priced financial products and services.
Finally, the performance plan has set a target of 60 fair lending examinations in 2024. Fair lending exams help ensure credit unions are fairly and equitably reaching all their members. Unfortunately, we’ve seen that redlining and lending discrimination continue to be a problem today. This will be an area of focus for me. I support a strong consumer compliance program and I’d like to work with the Board to continue to strengthen our fair lending and consumer protection efforts.