7 additional questions to address for NCUA’s Record Retention ANPR

Henry Meier, Esq., The Law Office of Henry Meier

I would venture a guess that no one who has dabbled in NCUA compliance for more than a year without being quietly confused and bemused by 12 CFR 749, which outlines NCUA’s record preservation requirements and guidelines for federally insured credit unions. Fortunately, now we can do something about it.

At its most recent board meeting, the NCUA Board issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, presumably as the first step in proposing amendments that will make the record preservation requirements easier to understand and implement and maybe even less costly. Comments are due 60 days after the regulation’s publication in the federal register.

Read the ANPR by accessing this link: https://ncua.gov/files/agenda-items/records-preservation-program-anpr-20240418.pdf.

*Remember that state-chartered credit unions may be subject to state record-keeping requirements in addition to NCUA’s. NCUA has no control over state requirements.*

Questions to Consider in Responding to NCUA

Part 749 currently includes a list of vital records, comprising in part a list of share deposit and loan balances and a financial report that lists all of the credit union’s assets, accounts and bank reconciliations and guidelines. At the board meeting, one of the key questions the board indicated it was most interested in hearing about was what, if anything, the board should do to distinguish between the mandatory requirements in part 749 and its suggested guidelines, which are not mandatory.

·       Does your credit union understand the distinction between vital records, which must be retained, and NCUA’s suggested guidelines? [yes     no      not sure       explain:_________]

·       Can you provide examples of the type of records you maintain because you are unsure if you have the authority to destroy them?

·       Should the NCUA promulgate more specific regulations with mandatory record-keeping requirements? [yes      no      why?___________]

·       Are there records that NCUA considers vital that should not be? [yes      no      please provide examples_______]

·       How does your credit union maintain its records? [electronic        physical        combination of both]

·       How much money does your credit union spend on record preservation?

Part 749 is not the only NCUA regulation that addresses record preservation issues. Most notably, Appendix A to Part 748 contains guidelines for safeguarding member information. Among part 748’s requirements, credit unions must “protect against destruction, loss, or damage of member information due to potential environmental hazards…”

·       Should the requirements of parts 748 and 749 be integrated? [yes    no      why?_________]

Remember, these are suggested questions that you may want to consider in addition to the specific questions asked by the NCUA. However you choose to respond to this ANPR, the most useful information you can provide to the NCUA is practical examples of how the record preservation requirements impact your credit union’s operations.