1. A credit union may add to its membership additional groups or geographic areas that comply with the provisions of subsection 2 of section 370.080 if the credit union meets the criteria set forth in this section.

2. Except as provided in subdivisions (1), (2), and (3) of this subsection, only employer groups with fewer than three thousand members shall be eligible to be included in the credit union’s field of membership, unless:

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(1) Any employer group which the commission determines, in writing and in accordance with the guidelines it has set forth, could not feasibly or reasonably establish a new single common-bond credit union because:

(a) The employer group lacks sufficient volunteer or other resources to support the efficient and effective operation of a credit union;

(b) The employer group does not meet the criteria which the commission has determined to be important for the likelihood of success in establishing and maintaining a new credit union;

(c) The employer group would be unlikely to operate a safe and sound credit union;

(2) The groups are involved in an involuntary merger or when the director acts as a conservator or liquidating agent; or

(3) The groups are transferred from another credit union in connection with a merger or consolidation approved by the director, provided when making this determination the director shall:

(a) Determine whether the service area of the merging credit union is contiguous to the area served by the continuing credit union;

(b) Assess the breadth of the service area of the combined credit unions;

(c) Assess the ability of the continuing credit union to serve the combined area; and

(d) Assess the number of voluntary mergers the acquiring credit union has requested, or received approval for, during the five-year period preceding the proposed merger.

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The director shall not permit state-chartered credit unions to merge without a thorough assessment by the director that the combined field of membership is consistent with this chapter and is reasonable in terms of size, service area, and geographic location.

3. Notwithstanding subsection 2 of section 370.080, the director of the division of credit unions may allow the membership of a credit union serving groups of occupation, association or employer to include any person within a proximate geographic area if:

(1) Such an area meets the definition of a low-income or underserved community as defined by the credit union commission or the National Credit Union Administration;

(2) A merger or consolidation has been approved by the director of the division of credit unions which involves any geographic area credit union.

4. The credit union may apply and receive approval from the director of the division of credit unions to include the proposed new occupation, employer, or association groups or geographic areas in the credit union’s membership. In the case of a new credit union application, the organizers of such credit union as provided in subsection 1 of section 370.080 shall specify the membership group selected as provided in subsection 2 of section 370.080. If an existing credit union applies for a field of membership expansion, such credit union shall select either a geographic area or occupation, employer, or association group as provided in subsection 2 of section 370.080 which shall be binding for all future expansions. When a credit union serving occupation, association, or employer groups has converted to a geographic area credit union, that credit union shall not accept as members new groups that are headquartered outside the geographic area of the credit union, or new employees or new members of those groups who work or reside outside the geographic area of the credit union. Upon receipt of an application from a credit union to include a new group or new geographic area in its membership, and no later than five business days after an application has been received, the director shall cause notice of the application to be published in the division’s electronic bulletin and sent electronically to any party who has requested notification of such applications. From the date such notice is published, there shall be a ten-business-day comment period during which any person or entity desiring to do so may comment on such proposal in writing. Comments received shall become a part of the credit union’s application file, subject to public inspection and copying. Within ten days after the comment period ends, the director of the division of credit unions shall issue a decision either granting or rejecting the credit union’s application and stating the reasons therefor. In addition to any other requirements required by law or rule, prior to granting the application, the director of the division of credit unions shall determine that:

(1) The credit union has the immediate ability to serve the additional group or geographic area. In making this determination, the director shall consider the data required to be reported on an annual basis by the state-chartered credit unions that includes aggregated information about the census tracts in which members reside, the actual or estimated annual income of members, and types and numbers of loans or extensions of credit for which members received approval. For the purposes of this section, the term “member data” shall mean information on the income levels of credit union members that credit unions are required to report; provided, however, that no member data includes the names, account numbers, or taxpayer identification numbers. In the event that the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) has a regulation on member data reporting requirements, the state annual member data report shall be made consistent with NCUA reporting requirements. The director shall determine the nonproprietary data to be included in the annual member data report which shall be made available to the public.

(2) No later than five business days after an expansion or merger has been granted, the director shall cause the decision and findings to be published in the division’s electronic bulletin and sent electronically to any party who has requested notification of such actions.

5. Within fifteen days after the decision is published, any person or entity with an interest different from that of a member of the general public, upon establishing that such person or entity may be aggrieved based upon competent and substantial evidence of potential actual damages, shall have the right to contest the decision by appealing the decision to the credit union commission utilizing the procedure as set out in section 370.063. If the commission finds that the decision or the findings of the director of the division of credit unions was arbitrary and capricious or not based on evidence in the director’s possession, the commission shall set aside the findings and decision of the director of the division of credit unions and enter its own findings and decision. Any party in the proceeding before the commission who has exhausted all administrative remedies provided by law may appeal the decision to the circuit court of Cole County.

6. Subject to the restrictions contained in this chapter, the director of the division of credit unions shall have the authority to approve applications to amend bylaws regarding credit union membership or to organize credit unions that include single or multiple groups.