1 of 1
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 850 FILED ON: 1/13/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1266
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Frank A. Moran
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act enhancing the mission of credit unions and promoting fair competition among financial
institutions.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Frank A. Moran17th Essex1/13/2025 1 of 3
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 850 FILED ON: 1/13/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1266
By Representative Moran of Lawrence, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1266) of
Frank A. Moran relative to the mission of credit unions and promoting competition among
financial institutions. Financial Services.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
_______________
An Act enhancing the mission of credit unions and promoting fair competition among financial
institutions.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Section 14 of said chapter 167 of the General Laws, as appearing in the
22018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the sixth paragraph the following two
3paragraphs:- If a person is eligible for membership in a credit union on the basis of living in a
4geographic area specified in the by-laws then the examination of its record of performance under
5this section shall assess its compliance with community reinvestment throughout the entire
6geographic area specified in the by-law.
7 A foreign credit union applying to establish a branch office in the Commonwealth
8pursuant to section 8A of chapter 171 shall file with the Division of Banks the credit union’s
9assessment area for compliance with this section or a strategic plan for satisfying its continuing
10and affirmative obligation to help meet the credit needs of the communities in the
11Commonwealth it states it will serve. 2 of 3
12 SECTION 2. Chapter 171 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
13striking out section 10, as most recently amended by section 26 of chapter 338 of the Acts of
142020, and inserting in place thereof the following two sections:–
15 Section 10. The by-laws may be amended at any annual meeting, or at a special meeting
16called for the purpose, by a majority vote of all of the members present and entitled to vote;
17provided, however, that the notice of the meeting and of the proposed amendment is given each
18member in the manner prescribed in said by-laws. .
19 The by-laws containing the conditions of residence, occupation, or association that
20qualify persons for membership may be amended by a three-fourths vote of all of the members
21present and entitled to vote. The membership vote may only be held at the annual meeting;
22provided, that it may be held at a special meeting called for the purpose of a merger if the
23membership by-law amendment is a necessary component of the merger, as determined by the
24commissioner. No such amendment shall become operative until an application is submitted to
25and approved in writing by the commissioner. The vote of the credit union’s members must
26occur prior to the submission of an application and a certified copy of the vote shall be submitted
27with the application. In order to be a valid vote on the amendment to the membership by-law,
28the number of members voting on the date set for the vote or voting by mail, if authorized in the
29by-laws, and received by that date must represent five per cent of the total number of members of
30the credit union as listed in the most recent call report filed with the National Credit Union
31Administration. It is prohibited for a member to vote by proxy.
32 Section 10A. A credit union shall establish a written policy that the credit union will
33follow to verify that a person meets the qualifications for membership. The policy must identify 3 of 3
34the specific documents the credit union will accept for verification of residency, occupation,
35association, work location, family relationship or other membership criteria specified in the by-
36law. For each new member, a credit union shall retain a copy of the document used to verify a
37person’s qualification for membership. Such documentation shall be maintained and segregated
38on a calendar quarter and annual basis for review by examiners.
39 SECTION 3. The second paragraph of section 11 of said chapter 171 , as most recently
40amended by section 27 of chapter 338 of the Acts of 2020, is herby amended by adding the
41following sentence:- A credit union that has more than 25,000 members as reported in its most
42recent quarterly report to the National Credit Union Administration shall provide its members
43with the option to vote by electronic means at any annual meeting or special meeting.
44 SECTION 4. Section 3 of this act shall apply to any an annual meeting or special meeting
45held on or after two years from the effective date of this act.