05/01/2012
CUNA Highlights Banker Survey Showing Readers Back MBLs
John Magill, CUNA executive vice president, government affairs, posed the question in a letter to the editor that ran in the online edition Thursday in response to the publication's April 23rd story, "Third Credit Union Dissents on Business Lending Bill."
If three dissenters is a story, asked Magill, then what about all the banks that have no objection to raising the credit union small business lending cap? He noted that the American Banker's own online survey this week suggests such bankers are out there, apparently in droves.
"Your survey posed the question, 'Should credit unions be permitted to expand credit union small-business lending?' Sixty percent of your readers said yes, the competition is healthy, another 10% said yes, as long as credit unions have sufficient capital, and only 31% said no," Magill wrote.
Magill noted that it can be presumed the majority of American Banker readers are directly involved in or favorably disposed toward the banking industry.
"Who knew 70% support our efforts to increase small business lending and job growth? I think American Banker should write about some of these bank executives.
"Based on your survey, it shouldn't be at all hard to find them."
Magill said that in a credit union universe of some 7,500 institutions, one will never find an issue that sparks total agreement. But, he said, CUNA has tracked at least 60,000 contacts to the U.S. Congress since late March from credit unions, small businesses and others in support of S. 2231, the Credit Union Small Business Jobs Act. That bill would increase the MBL cap to 27.5% of assets, up from 12.25%, under certain conditions.
"Clearly, our legislation has broad industry and small-business support, and the dissenters are in the distinct minority," Magill pointed out to the Banker.
To read News Now coverage of the American Banker survey, click here.
To read the American Banker letter, click here.