Lydia Wedlock, editorial assistant, The Credit Union Connection
With a new administration in office for about a month now, the NCUA has pivoted to adjust to the new agenda, and further adjustments are likely to come throughout the rest of the year. At GAC 2025 in Washington, D.C., Senior Director of Advocacy & Counsel at America’s Credit Unions Luke Martone and Partner at Atlas Advocacy Elizabeth Eurgubian discussed the future of the NCUA and what possible changes and regulations credit unions could see coming from the independent agency.
What’s Happening Now
As someone who was formerly with the NCUA, having left just a couple of weeks ago, Eurgubian is well aware of how quickly things change when a new administration takes office. Some established employees are let go and many new faces come in and begin moving quickly to implement their new ideas and agendas. In the case of the new Trump administration, as Martone put it, “To say that there’s a lot going on in D.C. is an understatement.” Over 80 executive orders have been put out by the White House so far, and two of them in particular, Ensuring Lawful Governance and implementing the President’s DOGE deregulatory initiative and ensuring accountability for all agencies, could have a tremendous impact on the NCUA and credit unions, from deregulation to a slower rulemaking.
Complying With the Administration
Though the NCUA is an independent agency, Eurgubian acknowledged that many independent agencies have become more political over time and generally want to comply and be consistent with the current administration and its objectives. At the moment, NCUA’s regulatory efforts might slow down as it works through the executive orders and figures out which ones don’t apply and which ones it’s already in compliance with. Until it figures out each of the orders, the NCUA probably won’t put out any major regulations.
In a Year from Now…
Both Martone and Eurgubian foresaw that due to DOGE’s efforts to decrease government spending, the workforce at the NCUA would be greatly reduced, mostly of probationary employees. These staff layoffs would greatly impact credit unions, particularly when it comes to their examination cycle. Instead of examinations happening at an earlier point in the exam cycle, they will likely happen during the latter point of the credit union’s risk-based exam cycle. It could potentially lead to a de-emphasis on consumer financial protection examinations.
The NCUA and credit unions will need to keep their head on a swivel to ensure compliance.