By Ray Birch
WASHINGTON—As Winter Storm Fern disrupts travel in the nation’s capital, credit union leaders are ramping up advocacy efforts amid rising risks tied to both a revived Credit Card Competition Act amendment and a looming federal government shutdown ahead of the Jan. 30 funding deadline.
“We’re still digging out here in D.C., but our team is fully engaged,” said America’s Credit Unions President and CEO Scott Simpson about the impact of Winter Storm Fern on the nation’s capital. “There’s been a lot of activity over the past few days, with the Senate Agriculture Committee taking up Sen. (Roger) Marshall’s bill now front and center. At the same time, we’re facing the prospect of a partial government shutdown by the end of the week—so, it’s definitely not going to be boring.”
“We’ve been activating our advocacy network nationwide to put pressure on lawmakers, and we’ve publicly called out what we believe is an abuse of the Agriculture Committee’s jurisdiction and germaneness rules,” Simpson said.
As CUToday.info reported, Sens. Marshall, Richard Durbin, and Peter Welch have proposed a modified version of the Credit Card Competition Act as a potential amendment to the Senate Agriculture Committee’s digital assets markup, currently scheduled for Thursday.
While Marshall is now expected not to offer the amendment himself, there remains a real possibility that Durbin, Welch, or another member could introduce it instead, said DCUC Chief Advocacy Officer Jason Stverak (see related story).
Matters Complicated
“Complicating matters, Sen. Marshall has not committed to voting to block or table the amendment if it is offered. With Republicans holding only a one-vote edge on the committee, any shift could impact whether the amendment advances—and could jeopardize broader momentum on the digital assets bill, which is a priority for both Senate Republicans and President Trump,” Stverak said.
Stverak emphasized that DCUC continues to oppose attaching the CCCA to the digital assets package, emphasizing that such a sweeping overhaul of the U.S. payments system has never received a hearing in the Senate Banking Committee, the committee of jurisdiction. Over the weekend, DCUC sent a letter to the Senate Agriculture Committee, and also urged credit union leaders to contact Senate Agriculture Committee members to highlight the risks the proposal poses to credit unions, military families, veterans, and local communities.
The revised CCCA language attempts to better align with the digital assets bill, partly to avoid being ruled non-germane, Stverak said.
“One major change shifts enforcement authority away from the Federal Reserve and instead gives state attorneys general the power to enforce the law,” he said.
That change, Stverak said, has created new political friction: Republicans worry about Democratic state attorneys general pursuing aggressive enforcement. Democrats raise parallel concerns about Republican attorneys general. As a result, enforcement structure remains a significant and controversial sticking point
The Agriculture Committee markup was scheduled for Tuesday, but travel disruptions caused by severe ice conditions at Reagan National Airport may delay proceedings, Stverak said, forcing the hearing to Thursday.
“Multiple flights have already been canceled or diverted, raising concerns about senators’ ability to return to Washington in time. There is growing speculation the markup could slip to later in the week,” Stverak said.
America’s Credit Unions Senior Vice President of Advocacy Greg Mesack noted the Agriculture Committee’s markup of the digital assets bill being moved to Thursday was inevitable.
“That gives senators more time to return to Washington—tomorrow at 3 p.m. was looking overly ambitious,” Mesack stated Monday during a call with the media. “There are still a lot of moving parts, and more unknowns than certainties at this point.”
Mesack emphasized that if credit card interchange legislation gets inserted into the crypto bill, ACU believes the bill will not advance to the Senate floor.
“The committee chairman (John Boozman) has made clear he wants this to remain a bipartisan digital-assets bill, and adding a non-germane interchange amendment would act as a poison pill,” Mesack said. “That said, we are not taking anything for granted. We’re treating this as live and preparing as if a vote could happen. We’re lining up the votes, staying fully engaged, and mobilizing credit union advocates and members to contact their senators and make their voices heard.”
Another Shutdown Looms
Stverak said DCUC is also closely monitoring the rising risk of a government shutdown ahead of the Jan. 30 funding deadline. While six appropriations bills have passed both chambers, the final and most consequential funding package passed the House last week and now faces resistance in the Senate.
Senate Democratic leadership, led by Sen. Chuck Schumer, has said it will not support any funding package that includes funding for ICE and the Department of Homeland Security. Because those programs are bundled within a single bill, any Senate changes would require the legislation to return to the House—which is currently out of session—making a timely resolution difficult, Stverak explained.
“Absent unanimous consent agreements to accelerate Senate procedures, a final vote may not occur until Thursday afternoon or later, leaving little margin before funding expires at midnight on Jan. 30,” Stverak said.
As CUToday.info reported, DCUC has already begun warning member credit unions to prepare for the consumer and service disruptions that typically accompany a shutdown, particularly for military households facing potential pay interruptions.
A key concern is that the U.S. Coast Guard—funded through the Homeland Security budget rather than the Defense Department—is especially vulnerable during shutdown scenarios. Even if some defense funding moves forward, Coast Guard personnel and families could be left without pay. DCUC notes that many member credit unions serve Coast Guard members, veterans, and military families, heightening the impact.
As CUToday.info reported, over the weekend, DCUC sent a letter to Senate leadership urging lawmakers to avoid using active-duty service members and their families as leverage in political funding disputes. This week is expected to be highly volatile on both the CCCA and federal funding fronts, Stverak added. Negotiations remain fluid, procedural outcomes are uncertain, and DCUC anticipates continued brinkmanship—particularly around ICE funding—before either side blinks or a compromise emerges.
Stverak expects Senate Democrats to hold firm on ICE-related demands, keeping shutdown risk elevated as the deadline approaches.