YOUR WEEKLY UPDATE FROM MONTANA'S CREDIT UNIONS | May 1, 2020

It's May, and Montana's weather seems (finally!) to be playing along. Even though our workload seems to grow as restrictions ease and the fallout from the coronavirus response continues, the sunshine makes things seem a bit brighter. This issue is once again full of information — we've got updates from regulators, links to resources for reopening, and some figures that show the amount of financial support you're providing your members. If you're wondering what we've been doing … MCU staff have put together an update video , with each of us chiming in from our home offices to let you know what we're currently working on. Remember, we're here to help in any way we can. Please reach out to us i f there's something we can do for you.

NEWS & INFO YOU CAN USE

BEST PRACTICES AND GUIDELINES FOR RE-OPENING Mark Springer from Dayspring Restoration discusses necessary steps in re-opening businesses according to best practices and established guidelines in this webinar from April 28 hosted by the Montana Chamber of Commerce.

PPP TESTIMONY FOR MONTANA LEGISLATORS I was pleased to report to the Montana House and Senate Join Interim Economic Affairs Committee that a dozen of Montana’s credit unions have engaged in SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The highlights that I provided are that 385 loans were approved and $19,580,949.39 was disbursed to assist businesses representing approximately 2,200 employees. A couple of fun facts: our smallest loan was $580 and our largest was $4.3 million. I know that our PPP lenders have been hard at it this week again and I’ll be curious to see how many Montana businesses and employees they’re able to help this go around!

FROM OUR REGULATORS NCUA SURVEYS START NEXT WEEK: NCUA announced that its examiners will be reaching out to credit unions between May 4-18 to conduct a survey on COVID-related issues . The questions will cover current operating status, cash needs, assistance you have provided to members, and more. It might be helpful to review the list in advance of your call to make sure you have the information necessary to respond.   CFPB PROVIDES MORTGAGE ORIGINATION FLEXIBILITY: This week the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued guidance clarifying that consumers can exercise their rights to modify or waive certain required waiting periods under TRID and Regulation Z rescission rules ( interpretive rules ), a request CUNA has made to the CFPB since the onset of the pandemic. Check out the FAQ the Bureau issued. NCUA ON LOAN MODIFICATIONS: The NCUA joined with other federal regulators, in consultation with state financial regulators, to issue a revised interagency statement that discusses accounting and reporting considerations related to passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. In conjunction, the agency also issued a letter to credit unions that describes a variety of strategies credit unions can use to work with borrowers who experience financial hardship because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also lays out how credit unions should monitor and report their loan modifications.

THE FOUNDATION'S IMPACT REPORT The National Credit Union Foundation released its 2019 Impact Report . Download it to find out how Gigi Hyland and her team served as a catalyst for change in the credit union movement last year.

OUR CONSUMER BLOG Don't let the world wide web of eCommerce get the best of your while staying (and working) at home. Our blog has some tips you and your members can use to shop online and keep your budget intact.

YOUR DUES DOLLARS AT WORK

MESSAGING AND SIGNAGE With Phase One in place, many of you are preparing to reopen your lobbies. We have developed a few resources for you to communicate plans with your membership. You can find lobby posters and messaging on the COVID-19 Collateral page . Please feel free to email Beth if you would like any additional signs or messages.

POWER UP REGISTRATION RE-OPENED Join us October 19-21 in Helena for our annual Power Up Conference & Expo. Enjoy “A Night at the Movies” full of valuable education sessions, networking (yes, in-person), FUNdraisers, expo hall vendors, entertainment, and our annual business meeting. Registration and details are now on our website . Reminder, if you registered for the original scheduled event in May, we cancelled your registration and you will need to re-register.

POWER UP REGISTRATION RE-OPENED Join us October 19-21 in Helena for our annual Power Up Conference & Expo. Enjoy “A Night at the Movies” full of valuable education sessions, networking (yes, in-person), FUNdraisers, expo hall vendors, entertainment, and our annual business meeting. Registration and details are now on our website . Reminder, if you registered for the original scheduled event in May, we cancelled your registration and you will need to re-register.

CELEBRATE THE GRADUATES AT YOUR CREDIT UNION The Heartland CU League has put together a #weCUgrads toolkit you can use to highlight your members who will soon be graduating. College and high school seniors will feel the credit union love when you celebrate their accomplishments! The tool kit has a social media campaign complete with deliverables. What a fun way to show the #CUDifference.

FROM OUR PARTNERS

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES MCU has joined Inclusiv, we can now give you access to the organization's expertise and knowledge in serving the underserved. Inclusiv offers guidance to credit unions serving low- and moderate-income communities through research publications, webinar series, roundtable events, and its Inclusiv Annual Conference. Check out these education resources on their website — thanks to our relationship, you can access them for free.

EMPLOYEE SAFETY AND THE WORKPLACE OF TOMORROW Yesterday’s branch of the future plan likely looks a lot different than today's. In fact, COVID-19 has led to a quicker adoption of plans for digital technology, remote work, and branch configuration that credit unions may have been considering. CUNA Mutual Group’s expert panelists will be discussing these these topics and more on Wednesday, May 13, at noon. Register to join them .

CU WEBINAR NETWORK Webinars make training your staff affordable and easy, especially with many of us working remotely these days. You may train as many people as you like for one price in the comfort of your own office, home office, or training room. New webinars are added regularly so check out the webinar schedule and start putting together your training plan.

BUILDING LOYALTY BY MANAGING CHANGE Change is inevitable. Is your credit union prepared to manage it when it occurs? Download this whitepaper from Harland Clarke for tips, strategies, and insight into effectively navigating change and mitigating its potentially disruptive effects.

EDUCATION, EVENTS, & OTHER INTERESTING STUFF

FREE EXERCISE APPS Both Peloton and Gold's Gym are offering free access to their apps and on-demand workouts through the end of May.

FREE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES We continue to update pre-recorded webinars and other resources on our Free Educational Resources page .

WE SEE THE #CUDIFFERENCE

Russell Country FCU employees proudly display their winnings after having, ahem, wiped out the competition at TP Trivia.

HELPING STAFF STAY SANE Let's face it — life has been a bit crazy these days! Credit unions across the state have been going above and beyond to help their members navigate social distancing, economic hardships, and stimulus checks … But, what about credit union employees? Our hearts have been touched by all the great stories of how credit unions are helping their staff keep up their morale in this time of change.  A great example is Russell Country FCU . The credit union has been keeping things light in the office with some trivia! On Wednesdays, staff play Transaction Trivia — the questions change; but in past weeks staff have guessed how many teller transactions took place on a given day and the open rate of their COVID-19 email blasts. The staff member closest to the correct answer, wins a $50 VISA gift card. Each Friday, the staff start their day with some “TP Fun Facts” (yes, we are talking about toilet paper). The winner gets a $10 VISA gift card and a roll of TP. What fun! This week the credit union has been playing COVID Bingo with staff! We know that this time can be stressful for staff, and doing these fun activities are just one of the millions of ways credit unions are a wonderful place to work!

MAKING AN ECONOMIC IMPACT IN MONTANA While only 17 credit unions answered our survey this week, the total support Montana credit unions are helping their members through economic hardship continues to grow. So far, Montana credit unions have reported over $47 million in emergency loans, payment extensions, fee waivers, and mortgage and commercial/business loan forbearance. Wow!

We want to hear all your great stories. If your credit union has been doing some fun stuff over these weeks of social distancing, please reach out to Kendra and share your great news!

PARTING SHOT

Poppy, my office mate, just doesn’t feel the same sense of urgency about the pandemic that I do!

This is an internal publication of Montana's Credit Unions intended for our affiliated credit unions and their official family. For more information, call us or visit our website.

Montana's Credit Unions | 800-745-5547 | montanascreditunions.coop

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