A building does not serve members better merely because their federal credit union occupies every room. NCUA's final rule published December 21, 2016 removed the obligation to plan for eventual full occupancy of acquired premises. The ethical question is more specific than expansion for its own sake: how does the institution use resources acquired for its members and business operations? [2016-30657][2016-09867]

The April 27 proposal described competing pressures. Compulsory full occupancy could obstruct cost-effective office space and growth, yet an absence of reasonable limits could invite speculative property activity. That is a useful stewardship distinction. Avoiding waste and restraining speculation are not opposing slogans; both concern whether a premises decision remains connected to the institution's purpose. The proposal offered reasoning, not proof of savings. [2016-30657][2016-09867]

The final rule preserved a concrete connection. Full-time use of at least 50 percent of each premises had to be by the federal credit union, alone or together with a service organization it controlled under generally accepted accounting principles. Partial occupancy remained due within a reasonable period, at most six years after acquisition, subject to a safety-and-soundness-based NCUA waiver. It was not unrestricted landlord authority. [2016-30657][2016-09867]

Effective January 20, 2017, the rule distinguished excess facilities from equipment and services. The latter retained a requirement to anticipate future member-service expansion; facilities no longer required eventual full occupancy. A stewardship assessment can therefore examine both the use of space and the obligations that remain. These two agency documents belong to one process and cannot establish that any institution actually improved service or protected members' resources. [2016-30657][2016-09867]

Source documents

  1. Federal Credit Union Occupancy, Planning, and Disposal of Acquired and Abandoned Premises; Incidental Powershttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2016-12-21/html/2016-30657.htm
  2. Federal Credit Union Occupancy, Planning, and Disposal of Acquired and Abandoned Premises; Incidental Powershttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2016-04-27/html/2016-09867.htm