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Chairman Johnson’s Statement on the GAO Report Concerning NCUA and Credit Unions

December 1, 2006, Alexandria, Va. – “The data used by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) does not provide as complete a picture of credit union member income as that gathered by NCUA in its Member Service Assessment Program (MSAP). The MSAP data consisting of over 14 million credit union member records was not evaluated by GAO or incorporated in the report. GAO's acknowledgement of the restrictions federal credit unions face regarding who they are legally able to serve is a critical aspect that merits additional discussion by Congress. It is also encouraging that the GAO report notes that federal credit unions are taking advantage of the available avenues, such as low-income designation and addition of underserved areas, to serve members in all income strata. We welcome this discussion, as well as the process by which Congress has learned more about federal credit union member service."

The National Credit Union Administration is the federal agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions. NCUA, with the backing of the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, operates the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund. NCUA is supported by credit unions, not federal tax dollars.