[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 80 (Wednesday, April 24, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 31117-31119]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-08680]


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NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION

12 CFR Part 749

[NCUA-2024-0026]
RIN 3133-AF61


Records Preservation Program and Appendices--Record Retention 
Guidelines; Catastrophic Act Preparedness Guidelines

AGENCY: National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The NCUA Board (Board) is issuing this advance notice of 
proposed rulemaking (ANPR) to solicit comments on ways the agency can 
improve and update its records preservation program regulation and 
accompanying guidelines in the NCUA regulations. The Board is 
particularly interested in obtaining stakeholder input on the content 
of the regulation, which has not been updated in 15 years and may be 
outdated or at odds with current best practices. The Board is also 
interested in feedback on the structure of the part which may be 
confusing as it currently contains a combination of regulatory 
requirements and guidance.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 24, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following 
methods identified by RIN (Please send comments by one method only):
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments for Docket Number NCUA-
2024-0026.
     Mail: Address to Melane Conyers-Ausbrooks, Secretary of 
the Board, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke Street, 
Alexandria, Virginia 22314-3428.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Same as mail address.
    Public Inspection: All public comments are available on the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov as submitted, except 
when impossible for technical reasons. Public comments will not be 
edited to remove any identifying or contact information. If you are 
unable to access public comments on the internet, you may contact the 
NCUA for alternative access by calling (703) 518-6540 or emailing 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Policy: Matt Huston, Policy Officer, 
Office of Examination and Insurance, at (571) 309-7684 or 
[email protected]; Legal: Gira Bose, Senior Staff Attorney, Office of 
General Counsel, at (703) 518-6562 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
II. Current Standards and Request for Comment
III. Legal Authority

I. Background

    In 2023, the NCUA received feedback that part 749 and its 
appendices are burdensome and unclear. Based on this feedback and other 
factors described below, the NCUA has identified the need to review 
part 749 to see if any changes or improvements are necessary. The Board 
recognizes the NCUA's regulations in this area, which were last updated 
many years ago, may be outdated or unclear for some credit unions, 
which ultimately may have adverse effects on their members. Thus, the 
Board is seeking advance comment on whether there is a need to update

[[Page 31118]]

part 749, and if so, what should be updated and how, to ensure that 
credit unions continue to properly preserve records vital to their 
business operations, the NCUA's supervisory needs, and the needs of 
their members.

II. Current Standards and Request for Comment

    Part 749 requires all federally insured credit unions (credit 
unions) to maintain a records preservation program to identify, store, 
and reconstruct vital records in the event that a credit union's 
records are destroyed.\1\
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    \1\ 12 CFR 749.0.
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    Part 749 requires a vital records preservation program to be in 
writing and contain certain procedures for maintaining duplicate vital 
records at an offsite vital records center.\2\ The regulation defines 
the term `vital records' as: (a) a list of share, deposit, and loan 
balances for each member's account as of the close of the most recent 
business day that shows each balance individually identified by a name 
or number; lists multiple loans of one account separately; and contains 
information sufficient to enable the credit union to locate each 
member, such as address and telephone number; (b) a financial report, 
which lists all of the credit union's asset and liability accounts and 
bank reconcilements, current as of the most recent month-end; (c) a 
list of the credit union's accounts at financial institutions, 
insurance policies, and investments along with related contact 
information, current as of the most recent month-end; and (d) emergency 
contact information for employees, officials, regulatory offices, and 
vendors used to support vital records.\3\
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    \2\ 12 CFR 749.2 and 749.3.
    \3\ 12 CFR 749.1.
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    At the same time, appendix A--which is included in part 749 as 
suggested guidelines for record retention--advises that the following 
additional sets of records should be retained permanently: 1. Official 
records of the credit union: (a) Charter, bylaws, and amendments; (b) 
Certificates or licenses to operate under programs of various 
government agencies, such as a certificate to act as issuing agent for 
the sale of U.S. savings bonds. 2. Key operational records: (a) Minutes 
of meetings of the membership, board of directors, credit committee, 
and supervisory committee; (b) One copy of each financial report, NCUA 
Form 5300 or 5310, or their equivalent, and the Credit Union Profile 
report, NCUA Form 4501, or its equivalent as submitted to the NCUA at 
the end of each quarter; (c) One copy of each supervisory committee 
comprehensive annual audit report and attachments; (d) Supervisory 
committee records of account verification; (e) Applications for 
membership and joint share account agreements; (f) Journal and cash 
record; (g) General ledger; (h) Copies of the periodic statements of 
members, or the individual share and loan ledger; (i) Bank 
reconcilements; and (j) Listing of records destroyed.\4\
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    \4\ 12 CFR part 749, appendix A.
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    Credit unions have expressed confusion regarding the interaction 
between part 749's requirements and appendix A, and between part 749 
and other parts of the NCUA's regulations that have record retention 
requirements not referenced in part 749. Under part 749, certain 
supervisory committee documents are not vital records and are subject 
to periodic destruction; yet under Sec.  715.8 the supervisory 
committee must retain the records of each verification of members' 
passbooks and accounts until the completion of the next member account 
verification.\5\
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    \5\ 12 CFR 715.8(c).
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    The Board seeks comment on all aspects of part 749 and the 
appendices, including how they can be modernized, streamlined, and 
clarified, and other provisions in the NCUA's regulations that contain 
record retention requirements. The Board also encourages credit unions 
and other stakeholders that have developed well-functioning records 
preservation programs to comment on what works for them and share their 
best practices in response to this document. In addition, the Board 
specifically requests feedback addressing the following areas: \6\
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    \6\ In responding to the questions below, the NCUA recommends 
respondents consider the totality of their vital records, including 
any such records a credit union has acquired, come into possession 
of, or retained through operational or organizational changes, such 
as a merger.
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A. Part 749 Definitions

    Questions:
    (1) Does the definition of vital records in 12 CFR 749.1 contain 
all, and only those, records you would consider to be vital for credit 
unions?
    (2) Are there additional types of documents not listed as a ``vital 
record'' that you think should be as they are critical for business 
operations and to properly serve members?
    (3) Are there other industry standards or methodologies outside of 
part 749 that the agency should consider for preserving vital records, 
for defining what vital records are, and for determining minimum 
retention periods?
    (4) The primary focus of the records retention guidance in appendix 
B relates specifically to catastrophic act preparedness. Are there any 
terms, definitions, or standards that the Board should consider 
updating in appendix B?
    (5) Are there any other changes to appendix B that you would 
recommend?

B. Records Retention Practices

    Understanding current credit union retention practices would be 
helpful in determining whether part 749 is properly serving its purpose 
which is for a credit union to identify, store, and reconstruct vital 
records in the event that the credit union's records are destroyed.\7\
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    \7\ 12 CFR 749.0(a).
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    Questions:
    (6) How long, and in what format, does your credit union store its 
vital records?
    (7) Does your credit union maintain and store any vital records in 
a physical format due to a regulatory requirement or supervisory 
expectation?
    (8) What impediments, including estimated costs, does your credit 
union encounter with storing vital records?
    (9) What records do you deem vital for business operations that a 
credit union should be required to keep permanently for the purpose of 
restoring vital member services?
    (10) Other than for records that must be kept permanently, are 
there specific timeframes you would recommend that other vital records 
be retained?
    (11) What are the pros and cons of storing vital records 
physically, electronically, or in other formats, such as cloud 
computing storage?
    (12) Does your credit union rely on third-party vendors to 
accurately maintain vital records, and if so, what are some of the 
challenges that these arrangements present?
    (13) How would you suggest the agency create a more effective 
framework for credit unions to preserve vital records?
    (14) What are some challenges for smaller credit unions, defined as 
credit unions with total assets of $100 million or less, in maintaining 
vital records, and what has worked? \8\
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    \8\ See NCUA Interpretive Ruling and Policy Statement 15-1, 
available at https://ncua.gov/files/publications/regulations/IRPS2015-1.pdf.
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    (15) What additional support, training, or technical assistance 
could the NCUA provide, if any, to assist credit unions with both 
understanding and implementing records retention requirements?

[[Page 31119]]

C. Additional Guidance

    The issuance of guidance in this area has been a long-standing 
agency practice to assist credit unions with their record preservation 
obligations. As noted in an earlier rulemaking on part 749, ``there is 
a need for guidance in the area of record retention based on the 
frequency of requests for assistance from credit unions.'' \9\ 
Additionally, clearer guidance in this area would also allow NCUA to 
better execute its supervisory duties. As part of meeting this need, 
the agency has taken steps over the years to clearly state the 
difference between regulations and guidance. In a prior rulemaking on 
part 749, the Board attempted to clarify this issue by stating, ``The 
Board has weighed the fact that guidance is available from other 
sources and the potential for confusion regarding enforceability of a 
regulation versus guidance. The Board believes the benefit to credit 
unions in having the guidance in the appendix to the regulatory 
requirement will enhance access to the guidance and will facilitate 
compliance.'' \10\ In the part 749 rulemaking, the Board further noted 
that ``including specific words like `recommended' and `guidance' 
means, as a legal matter, that the guidance is just that--guidance--and 
is not enforceable as a regulation. These words clarify and minimize, 
to the extent linguistically possible, the potential for 
misinterpretation.'' \11\ The NCUA recently codified this position in 
an interagency rulemaking clarifying the distinction between a rule and 
guidance whereby the former creates binding legal obligations, and the 
latter does not.\12\
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    \9\ 66 FR 11239 (Feb. 23, 2001).
    \10\ 72 FR 42271 (Aug. 2, 2007).
    \11\ 12 U.S.C. 1766(e).
    \12\ 12 U.S.C. 1766(e).
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    Questions:
    (16) What provisions of appendix A or appendix B do not align with 
the requirements of part 749, or are otherwise outdated or unclear 
examples of the types of records that should be retained? For records 
you consider outdated, please explain why.
    (17) In terms of the content of any future guidance, what guidance 
would be helpful to better reflect the types of records that must be 
retained under part 749?
    (18) What guidance would be helpful for catastrophic act or other 
disaster preparedness?
    (19) Is there confusion among stakeholders regarding the 
enforceability of regulation versus guidance concerning part 749? If 
so, what should be revised?

D. Other NCUA Regulations

    Questions:
    (20) Are there other provisions in the NCUA's regulations that 
contain record retention requirements that should be incorporated into 
part 749?

III. Legal Authority

    The Board issues this ANPR pursuant to its authority under the 
Federal Credit Union Act (FCUA) to prescribe rules and regulations as 
it deems appropriate for administering the FCUA, including its 
recordkeeping requirements for Federal credit unions.\13\ Maintaining 
vital records is central to a credit union's ability to properly 
service its members and to the NCUA's ability to fulfill its 
supervisory and enforcement duties. Section 209 of the FCUA is a 
plenary grant of regulatory authority to the Board to examine and 
require information and reports from credit unions as well as issue 
rules and regulations necessary or appropriate to carry out its roles 
as regulator and share insurer.\14\ Section 206 of the FCUA requires 
the agency to impose corrective measures whenever, in the opinion of 
the Board, any credit union is engaged in or has engaged in unsafe or 
unsound practices in conducting its business.\15\ Accordingly, the FCUA 
grants the Board broad rulemaking authority to ensure that credit 
unions, their member owners, and the National Credit Union Share 
Insurance Fund remain safe, sound and protected.
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    \13\ 12 U.S.C. 1766(e).
    \14\ 12 U.S.C. 1789(a)(8) and (11).
    \15\ 12 U.S.C. 1786(b)(1). There are several references to 
``safety and soundness'' in the FCUA. See 12 U.S.C. 
1757(5)(A)(vi)(I), 1759(d & f), 1781(c)(2), 1782(a)(6)(B), 1786(b), 
1786(e), 1786(f), 1786(g), 1786(k)(2), 1786(r), 1786(s), and 
1790d(h).

    By the National Credit Union Administration Board.
Melane Conyers-Ausbrooks,
Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2024-08680 Filed 4-23-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7535-01-P