CUNA’s Nussle, Donovan talk 116th Congress with Bloomberg

Credit Union National Association President/CEO Jim Nussle told Bloomberg that the 116th Congress would be able to work across party lines for key credit union issues. Nussle, along with CUNA Chief Advocacy Officer Ryan Donovan, spoke to Bloomberg about the need for federal data protection legislation and other topics.

Nussle, a former member of Congress representing Iowa, said data security should be at the top of lawmakers’ to-do list, noting, “that has possibly the best likelihood to move.”

Donovan said any data protection bill should put the same kind of protection and remediation requirements on merchants that financial institutions already face. “When that payments system is secure from all angles, we’ll see the number of data breaches decreases,” Donovan said.

Nussle and Donovan also discussed:

• New House Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), and her open-mindedness about moving legislation forward in a responsible way;
    
• Hopes that new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Kathy Kraninger will ease on rules that affect credit unions; and
    
• President Donald Trump moving to fill vacant seats on the three-person NCUA board. Two seats are currently filled, by Chairman J. Mark McWatters and board member Rick Metsger, whose term expired in August 2017.